- scale formed on the heat exchanger, which has to be cleaned and washed periodically. With an increase in the layer, the boiler efficiency decreases. To increase productivity, you have to increase the power. This increases fuel consumption and accelerates wear on the unit.
The scale layer interferes with the proper cooling of the heat exchanger. At one point, the unit will fail, or it will burn out from overload circulation pump... How is the heat exchanger flushed, what means can you use?
A signal for the user that it is time to clean the boiler - a decrease in heat transfer, an increase in gas consumption (). But it is better not to bring it to this: the thicker the layer of dirt, the more difficult it will be to cope with it on your own, and cleaning by professionals will cost a pretty penny.
Under normal conditions, do-it-yourself cleaning of the heat exchanger of a double-circuit boiler is carried out every two years (). If the water is hard, more often. Special attention given to a secondary heat exchanger through which hard tap water flows.
The second mandatory action is the removal of soot, which is deposited on the outer surface of the heat exchanger housing. There are no strict recommendations about the frequency of cleaning - the amount of soot depends on the quality of the gas used, on the efficiency of the filters in the supply, on design features boiler, etc.
The need for cleaning can be determined visually, or this work can be done in conjunction with the internal flushing. Large accumulations of limescale and soot in the aggregate can reduce the heating efficiency of the boiler by half.
If instead of water in heating circuit antifreeze is used, the regularity of cleaning depends on its brand: in some non-freezing liquids add chemical components that counteract the accumulation of plaque.
How to clean the heat exchanger of a double-circuit boiler and how often it needs to be done is indicated in the instructions for the model. But these recommendations are usually designed for ideal conditions operation (composition of water, etc.), which in real life usually does not happen.
Cleaning methods
How to flush the heat exchanger of a double-circuit boiler at home? In some cases, disassembly of the unit is mandatory, while others can be dispensed with. The purpose of dismantling is to provide access to the heating element. Disassembly cleaning can be dispensed with minimal cost, but this option is lengthy and laborious.
Sometimes partial disassembly is carried out - for example, to remove soot from the fire tube heat exchanger of the floor boiler. The heat exchanger itself at home cannot be dismantled, they free access to it: they also remove the cover with the chimney outlet.
How to remove a heat exchanger from a wall-mounted gas boiler? First, the electrical unit is de-energized, the water supply is cut off, the water is drained from both circuits and expansion tank... After that, the heat exchanger is dismantled.
Flushing
How to descale the heat exchanger of a gas boiler with your own hands? With a small amount of plaque inside, you can do with manual flushing using a solution citric acid.
With a thick layer of limescale, a rinsing system is required to circulate the detergent for several hours. For this purpose, a 10-liter tank with a pump is suitable (you can use a circulation pump from the circuit). Two hoses from the pump are connected to two connections of the heat exchanger.
There are three cleaning methods:
- mechanical;
- chemical;
- hydrodynamic.
In the first case, you can use a brush, scraper, vacuum cleaner to remove plaque. The parts of the heat exchanger are pre-soaked in solutions of cleaning agents.
At chemical processing solution for acid washing is pumped into the system with the help of a booster and for several hours it is driven through a heat exchanger. Acidic solutions remove ferrous and carbonate sediments well. At the end of cleaning, the agent is drained and a neutralizing agent is poured.
The hydrodynamic method is the injection of water with abrasives into the system under pressure. Thus, inner surfaces are cleaned mechanically, but the cleaning efficiency is higher than with manual processing. Flushing can be performed without dismantling the system, but it is quite expensive. When cleaning yourself, you need to monitor the pressure in the circuits in order to avoid rupture of the heat exchanger.
Chemical Compositions
How to flush the heat exchanger of a gas boiler? The safest option is citric acid. Industrial cleaning agents for gas boiler heat exchangers - Cillit, DETEX, Sanax.
Hydrochloric acid is more effective. But its use is more dangerous for both the user and the system. The concentrated acid can destroy the inner protective layer of the heat exchanger and also increase the brittleness of the metal.
External treatment of contaminated parts is carried out with special compounds to remove soot and carbon deposits. As a last resort, you can use household detergents.
Video about flushing the heat exchanger of a gas boiler.
The easiest way to descale the gas water heater.
Immediately I want to make a reservation in the article it is about cleaning the flow part of the water heater from scale... At the same time, we warn you that we categorically do not recommend interfering with the operation of the gas part of the column. Gas should be dealt with by gas workers. Otherwise, due to the slightest oversight, big troubles can be done.
The most common malfunction of gas flow heaters or gas water heaters is considered overgrowing of the water heater with scale accumulated in the heat exchanger.
How to understand whether you need to clean the heat exchanger or not, and what makes it clogged. In overgrown tubes instantaneous water heater scale to blame, as a rule, you yourself and only partly hard water. Why are you yourself, after all, everyone around is doing nothing but scolding hard water. The thing is that it starts when the water temperature is over 80 degrees. To be precise, there are still no deposits at 78 degrees, and at 82 degrees, intensive scale deposits begin. Why do you ask such a temperature? For bathing, temperatures above 42 degrees are not needed, 45 degrees is enough to remove fat, the means for removing fat can cope with it in cold water. You don't need more than 60 degrees for washing, but now mostly erase washing machines - machines.
Draw your own conclusions. Many people leave work gas water heater on the igniter, undoubtedly, it is convenient, there is no need to light it up and adjust it every time, the flame on the igniter is small, but if you drilled it out for reliability, then an hour is enough for the temperature in the heater's heat exchanger to rise to 90 degrees, so there is scale for you. And our third mistake is work of a gas water heater at low water consumption - read low water pressure in the water supply system. Of course, an instantaneous water heater cannot operate normally at low pressure. But Russian craftsmen and "the devil will make pancakes bake at Shrovetide." We will twist the igniter where necessary, we will drill out the igniter, put a washer and volley at the output of the gearbox, the water barely goes, and the column burns and even throws out boiling water with steam. So much for you your scale.
Conclusions:
So that scale does not form in the column, do not be lazy to turn it off and turn it on as needed, if you don’t want, use either a double-circuit boiler designed for production hot water... And it's not true that boilers heat water worse, personally I have the most ordinary, cheap "Zhitomir" provides hot water no problem two bathrooms and a shower.
Don't overhaul automation flow heater if you have a weak head, it is better put, there are a lot of them now, you can always find the right one for you.
When turning on the gas water heater, adjust the water flow by temperature, you don't need boiling water, tell me why dilute the hot water with cold water, if now we pay the same for both.
When it is necessary to flush the coil (heat exchanger) of the gas column.
Gas column heat exchanger.
Well, now, if we already had trouble, let's get down to flushing the heat exchanger. And you can understand that the heat exchanger of the gas column is clogged by the following symptoms:
— low head in the hot water tap with good pressure in the tap with cold water, while the column either does not turn on at all, or turns on and then turns off.
Of course, the tap at the inlet to the column may still break, so first check it, and only then disassemble the gas column.
We made sure that the tap is in good working order, you can start disassembling the water heater.
How to disassemble a column heat exchanger. Tools for work.
I think it's not worth describing the entire disassembly process. The main thing is to make sure that you have necessary tool... This is in the minimum set a "Bako" or pipe wrench No. 1, an adjustable wrench, screwdrivers - Phillips and flat at least No. 5, set of spare paranite gaskets... Do you also need 60 centimeters of rubber hose? inch with a metal clamp. Some columns may have a larger tube, so check the thickness for yourself. And, of course, purchase it in advance at the household store, it is sold in the form of a dry powder, and is diluted with hot water. If you're lucky, you can find it there, in a plastic bottle. Take better 2 pieces, so that it is enough for two times.
Anti-scale
First, remove the fittings from the boiler - handles, etc. Then the casing. They took off the casing decide on the water supply pipes so as not to accidentally touch the gas.
Rinsing the column from scale.
After removing the casing from the gas column, shut off the water supply at the inlet and open any of the hot water taps closer to the column. Further from the heat exchanger of the instantaneous water heater unscrew the supply tube, and take it a little to the side. Copper heat exchanger and the tube will allow us to do this without difficulty. As soon as you unscrew the nut from the heat exchanger, water starts to leave the heat exchanger - the tap is open, we drain a little water, about a liter. To be precise, you can find in the passport of the column the volume of water in the heat exchanger and drain a little more.
Then we do this: we put a hose on the inlet of the heat exchanger, raise it higher than the column, insert a funnel into the hose and pour the prepared solution into it in a thin stream. Pour on slowly, otherwise a reaction may start and the solution will be pushed back. Hydrochloric acid is present in the solution, it can cause burns. Take special care of your eyes.
The descaling solution should remain in the heat exchanger for a couple of hours. If you did not turn off the gas, and we did not recommend you to do this, you can warm up the solution on a burning igniter. The reaction will go faster, it will take less time.
Substitute a plastic bucket or basin under the tap, and open the water supply to the column. Only slowly. See what comes out of the hose. If there is a lot of sludge and the pressure after flushing is not bad, then everything went well, if not, repeat the entire flushing procedure again. But in the case of using anti-scale, you will hardly have to do it. If you haven't found an anti-scale agent, you can use a 100-gram package of citric acid, dissolving it in 500 ml of water beforehand. It is said to work well with nine percent vinegar rinsing. But we, frankly, have not tried other solutions.
The thing is that in addition to the heat exchanger, there are other parts in the gas column. The heat exchanger itself is copper and nothing will happen to it, but the so-called reducer is usually aluminum, you can ruin it. Therefore, if you do not find antiscale, do not experiment with other solutions according to our technology, it is better to remove the heat exchangers and rinse it separately.
What causes the heat exchanger to clog up with scale?
Of course, with complete disassembly the heat exchanger of the gas column will have to do a lot of unnecessary work, but this way you will definitely not spoil it. Flush the flow path of the water heater gas water heater, for example, they told me that Pepsi Cola washes off scale well, so if you want, experiment, especially if you have your own home and you have the opportunity to use z. Good luck!
Modern heating equipment distinguishes high degree reliability and high efficiency rates. However, during operation, many owners of gas boilers are faced with an unforeseen problem - the appearance of scale on the surface of the heat exchanger.
For the most part, the appearance of this "secondary" effect of the equipment operation is characteristic of 2-circuit gas boilers... The appearance of scale is directly related to the composition of the water coming from central system... If the organization autonomous heating you can independently prepare the coolant for operation (use of distilled liquids, special softeners, etc.), then with a direct connection to the central water supply, these measures cannot be applied.
The composition of water, which makes many kilometers of pipe runs, contains a large percentage of calcium and magnesium salts. As long as the liquid is not heated, they are in a free state and the process of settling occurs very slowly. An example is metal pipes in which this process lasts for decades.
But when heated, the situation changes radically. Scale is formed according to the diagram below.
The consequence of this effect is not only the loss of the "aesthetic" appearance heating elements, but also a significant deterioration in the following characteristics:
- An increase in the flow rate of the heat carrier, since the actual thickness of the heat exchanger increases, and its thermal conductivity decreases.
- A noticeable drop in efficiency.
- Heating the boiler surface.
- Reduced equipment life.
To solve this problem, there are several cleaning methods that differ in efficiency and process technology.
Chemical
The principle of operation of this type of cleaning is the destruction or partial decomposition of the scale layer when exposed to chemicals... Depending on the method of carrying out cleaning activities, it can be:
- Preventive.
- Collapsible.
Preventive cleaning is the action on limescale by flushing with special solutions containing inhibitors. In addition to direct removal, their application significantly slows down the rusting process.
To carry out this event, you will need the following equipment and tools:
- Chemical liquid. It should include active substances that destroy scale, an inhibitor and surface active substances (surfactants). Currently, there are several manufacturers of such products: Detex, Master Boiler, Cillit-Kalkloser P etc. In some cases, a solution is used of hydrochloric acid... Effective but dangerous - may damage the surface of the heat exchanger.
After preparatory phase you can start the process, which consists of the following stages:
- Disconnecting the boiler from the mains, shutting off the flow of water from the central water supply system.
- Draining a small part of the coolant.
- Disconnection of the inlet and outlet pipes from the heating system.
- Connecting the booster to the branch pipes and pouring into it chemical composition... Before that, you should carefully read the instructions for use.
- Start up the device. Typically, 2 hours of work is enough. If necessary, you can use the reverse booster mode.
- At the end of cleaning, the chemical composition is drained into a separate container. Attention!!! Never dispose of it in the sewer system.
- According to the above technology, the system is filled with water and washed again.
This technique combines not only chemical, but also hydropneumatic cleaning, when, in the process of scale decomposition, its particles are washed off the surface of the heat exchanger under the pressure of water or a chemical liquid.
Dismountable flushing is used only if the heat exchanger is heavily soiled. To carry it out, it is necessary to completely disassemble the boiler, which is not applicable for brazed models.
After disassembly, the heat exchanger plates are immersed in chemical solution... After visual inspection, the elements are rinsed with water. This method is very time consuming and requires special skills. That's why independent application it is not recommended without experience in carrying out such work.
Ultrasonic
In addition to the above method, there is ultrasonic cleaning. Its principle is the effect of sound waves of a certain frequency on the surface of the heat exchanger, at which the scale is destroyed. But the cost and labor intensity of its use are not appropriate for private use.
The essence of the work of the heat exchanger of a gas boiler is to warm up and maintain a stable temperature of heat carriers - special antifreeze or water. Heat carriers, in turn, circulating through the heating system, heat up the batteries, thereby saturating inner space dwellings with warmth and comfort.
During intensive operation of a gas boiler, a sufficiently large amount of scale or insoluble deposits accumulates on the walls of the heat exchanger, which can eventually cause its breakdown. In order to protect themselves from such a nuisance, the owners of apartments and houses with gas heating, perform flushing. There are two ways to flush a gas boiler - manual (mechanical) and chemical.
Manual way
The manual method of flushing the heat exchanger is popular due to its low cost. In order to solve the problem, it is necessary to disassemble the boiler, remove the heat exchanger and rinse it with special cleaning mixtures. After flushing, it is necessary to install the heat exchanger again and assemble the boiler.
Despite all its availability, this method is not optimal, since when disassembling the body and mechanisms of a gas boiler, you can inadvertently damage its sealing elements and other parts. In turn, damage to the seals can compromise the tightness. household appliance, which is highly undesirable from a safety point of view.
Chemical method
The chemical method also makes it possible to produce effective cleaning the heat exchanger from the scale accumulated on its walls. However, the this method there is a significant advantage, which is that when carrying out cleaning work, there is no need to disassemble the gas boiler and dismantle the heat exchanger.
It's smart and safe way, although more expensive in financial plan... Its essence consists in connecting a special device to a gas boiler, which functionally resembles a pump. This device for some time drives special highly efficient chemical reagents through the heat exchanger of a gas boiler.
Definitely, chemical method worth the money spent on it, since the reagents destroy not only the plaque accumulated on the walls of the heat exchanger, but also effectively clean the pipes, taps, circulation pump and other elements of the gas boiler.