Cleaning exchangers: what are the best practices ?

Cleaning ACC: Best Practices

Here are some precautions to take:

• • Counter-current Cleaning: The first tip is to clean from the outside in, pushing the dirt back where it came from. Since impurities concentrate on the inner face of the finned tubes, cleaning from the outside pushes the dirt back in the direction from which it came.
  • Proper Water Jet Angle: It’s also very important to spray the water at a right angle to the surface, to have a water jet parallel to the fins and avoid bending the fins under the effect of the high-pressure water jet. Using our AX CLEANER® guarantees this.
  • Stop Fans Before Cleaning: The last tip is to stop the fans before cleaning to halt the airflow.

Cleaning ACC: Mistakes to Avoid

Avoid Manual High-Pressure Washers: It is strongly discouraged to try cleaning with a manual high-pressure washer like a Karcher. With such a washer, it is impossible to ensure that the jet is parallel to the fins, and with a 90-bar jet not parallel to the fins, the risk of bending the fins is huge. It is also impossible by hand to ensure that 100% of the exchange surface has been cleaned.

 

 

 

Avoid Sandblasting: Sandblasting can damage the fins by removing the aluminum coating.Avoid Cleaning with Baking Soda: Due to the risk of chemical reaction, cleaning with sodium bicarbonate is not recommended. The aluminum of the fins and the sodium bicarbonate can react, causing electrolysis and thus damaging your ACHE.