Cleaning Boiler Fins

[Bubbles Galore]

The fins on my boiler are about 50-60% clogged up. I was just wondering what you guys use to clean them. I know the fins are delicate and don't want to destroy them with a harsh chemical. Also, will the fire brick get damaged if it comes in contact with water or any of the chemicals we are trying to clean the fins with?

Thanks for the help.

 

[bmills]

Miserable job

This is a horrendous job. Probably ranks right up there with cleaning vacuums. Fortunately this one doesn't need to be done that often. I have cleaned standard type boilers, Weben Jarco with a long handled tire scrubbing brush with nylon bristles and in conjunction used high pressure spray from a bay pump. Have to take precautions to wrap a skirt around the base otherwise the mess will go everywhere.

For a horizontal fin type why not just get a kit and remove the tubes and manifolds, clean them individually and then replace them with the new seals. I have cleaned these types with just the tire brush from both the top and bottom. Unfortunately it won't get between the tubes without removing them and the corrosion falling on your face is miserable.

A possible tip. If you have very cold water entering the boiler and it is causing condensation and therefore corrosion on the coils, you may want to consider a recirculation device in order to warm the inlet water and cut down on the condensation.

Good luck.

 

[Bubbles Galore]

Thanks for the tips. I am not looking forward to it at all, but I also don't like not giving my customers hot water to wash their cars. So you just use a brush and HP? I am concerned that my fins might be a little fragile as they are the originals from 1990. That is why I was thinking something like oven cleaner would work well seeing as how it foams up. Then I was just going to wash it off with a garden hose. What do you think?

Sidenote: I just bought this wash and basically jumped in head first.

I have contacted Raypak to see about getting a service manual. I would also like to see what replacement parts I could get, but I am still waiting for a response.

 

[bmills]

Those fins are actually pretty stout unless heavily corroded. Try a stiff nylon bristle brush in a small area I think you will find that you can proceed with vigor. You might try contacting Huron Valley Sales. They are big RayPak dealers and might even have the ability to email you with an illustrated parts break down. If I recall I could actually remove the fire brick in my RayPaks and then replace them in the same order after cleaning the tubes. Maybe the brick only came out because they were so old. One thing to look for is sagging tubes in a RayPak. A sure sign of over heating. If they are sagging you best replace them after going to all of this trouble to this point. The manifolds will start leaking soon if not already. In fact a leaky manifold could actually cause corrosion from the steam generated when the antifreeze drips onto the burner. You might also want to remove and clean all of the burner orifices since you're in there anyway.

Chim Chiminey, Chim Chiminey, Chim Chim Cheree, a chimney sweep's happy, as happy can be!

 

[pitzerwm]

When I had them in my laundromats, I would disconnect the whole thing and took them to a CW and used the HP to blow them out.

 

[Bubbles Galore]

Just a sidenote, if you don't clean your boiler about every 6 months, you should. After we cleaned everything up, we cut our natural gas bill in about half! We didn't add any new parts, we just did a thorough cleaning and I am amazed now at how well it works!