Understanding the Potential: Internal Boiler Tube Cleaning Considerations
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Boiler tube cleaning of internal components with the use of chemicals is a process that even experienced plant personnel don’t fully understand. Rather than being a common, routine maintenance job, it is often times a complex procedure that requires a considerable degree of skill, specialized equipment, and protective measures in order to succeed. Misuse of chemical cleaning can result in very expensive damage, but when done right, it is one of the best possible, efficiency-increasing methodologies to apply. What Could Happen? The deposits left by the operation of a boiler inside its tubes are normally quite tough, ranging from brittle calcium carbonate to magnetite and even copper oxides. Obviously, the chemicals needed to break down these deposits are extremely hazardous, and any chemical residue that remains after a boiler tube cleaning could destroy the equipment when it goes back online. Incorrect handling, mixing, or application of the chemicals during the cleaning process can also lead to a spill, severe boiler metal corrosion or other extremely undesirable consequences to plant equipment as well as exposure to personnel and the environment. Benefits of Chemical Cleaning If there are risks associated with chemical cleaning, why implement it? The use of chemicals is often times the only practical means effective and strong enough to remove efficiency-killing or insulating deposits like the ones mentioned above, at least within a time frame acceptable to most plants. When an experienced crew applies and utilizes them carefully and with established procedures, they are a powerful tool that gives new life to boilers that have been compromised by harmful buildup inside the tubes and other internal components. The improved efficiency directly leads to measurable financial benefits and reduces the chances of an equipment breakdown down the road. If it is time for a boiler tube cleaning at your facility, do not leave the task in inexperienced hands. Instead, contact us at Thompson Industrial Services and find out more about our expertise in this important area. Our seasoned engineers and other field personnel will evaluate and examine your individual situation and devise a comprehensive plan of execution to get your boiler cleaned and back online safely and quickly.

Press Contact

• Emily Martin
• Marketing Manager
• 100 N. Main Street
• Sumter, SC 29150
• (803) 773-8005
• emartin@thompsonind.com