The water that supplies your steam boiler can contain small amounts of minerals. Over time, the minerals can accumulate as scale inside the boiler, impacting its efficiency and encouraging corrosion. Learning why scale accumulates, understanding why you should clean it off and knowing how to clean your industrial boiler system is essential for its efficiency, health and longevity.
Scale is caused by dissolved minerals present in the water crystallizing and becoming solid deposits; these deposits bind to the metal surfaces in the boiler. There is a phenomenon called supersaturation, in which there will be too many dissolved solids present in the water for it to be able to hold any more. At this point, the solids become insoluble and form solids. The level of supersaturation is influenced by several factors, including temperature and pH levels. Areas with hard water have a high number of dissolved solids, and changing the boiler water chemistry is recommended to prevent excessive scale deposits.
Scale is the term for mineral deposits that accumulate inside an industrial boiler system. Water in a boiler contains varying levels of minerals, such as magnesium, calcium and silicon. These minerals interact with other elements to form sulfate, carbonate and high silica, which can become scale deposits in a boiler system. Scale forms when the water and mineral solution’s concentrations change.
In steam boilers, scale forms when evaporation skews the ratio of water to dissolvable minerals. With less liquid water available to hold the minerals, precipitation occurs and scale deposits form on the water tank’s surfaces.
Hot water boilers accumulate scale deposits when the water’s mineral content or temperature rises. Scale typically forms on the inside of a hot water boiler’s water tubes.
Increased mineral concentration causes scale after surpassing a mineral’s solubility limit, which is the maximum amount that can dissolve in a solvent. When dissolution slows and stops, excess minerals accumulate as scale deposits.
Increasing the water’s temperature also impacts solubility. Most dissolvable solids in water become more soluble at higher temperatures, so boilers elevate solubility. When a greater percentage of the minerals in the boiler’s water dissolves, the water reaches its peak saturation. Dissolution stops, allowing scale deposits to form. Temperature varies between a boiler’s various surfaces, so more scale tends to develop on hotter surfaces.
Removing scale deposits is a crucial part of industrial boiler maintenance. Without proper chemical water treatment in boilers, scale precipitates, damaging your boiler system and compromising its efficiency.
When scale precipitates and forms within the boiler system, it can cause an isolating effect, which increases temperature variations. These increased variations can overheat the boiler, resulting in a boiler tube leak or, in extreme cases, boiler tube rupture. Scale deposits can also trap corrosive substances against metal surfaces, causing them to degrade faster.
Scale reduces a boiler’s efficiency when generating and transferring heat. Allowing the scale in a boiler to persist will result in higher fuel and energy bills. Cleaning a boiler can restore its performance.
When scale accumulates on or around a heat exchanger or pipe, the minerals form an insulative layer that decreases heat transfer efficiency. Consequently, the system exerts more energy to achieve a sufficient temperature.
Scale also hinders heat transfer by altering the inside of the pipes. The formations cause structural irregularities that inhibit water flow or increase drag. As a result, water and steam move less efficiently through the system.
Given the importance of completely removing all scale deposits from the boiler, it is best to hire a professional industrial boiler cleaning company. A professional boiler descaling company has the skills, tools and experience for the job.
Industrial boiler cleaners use professional-grade cleaning chemicals and precisely calculated measures to remove all scale deposits. Professional descaling services are also faster and more efficient. A company’s experienced boiler cleaning technicians and well-documented service plans keep multi-day processes on a tight schedule.
While you can purchase cleaning chemicals and attempt to remove the boiler scale yourself, the process requires time and diligence. Rather than delegating the task to an internal employee, hire a professional who can ensure a scale-free system with minimal downtime.
Chardon Laboratories is a commercial boiler treatment company that businesses in various parts of the United States trust. We offer comprehensive boiler scale solutions. Qualifying systems receive a Scale-Free Guarantee.
With services from a professional hot water and steam boiler cleaner like Chardon Labs, your organization will benefit from:
We achieve complete scale removal by incorporating industry-standard boiler tube cleaning strategies and proprietary chemicals. Our boiler descaling services consist of:
Chardon Labs uses meticulous cleaning methods and refined treatment chemicals to remove scale deposits and prevent new ones from forming. We service steam boilers, hot water boilers and other closed-loop systems in multiple states, so contact us online to request further information or schedule an appointment.
