A gas heating boiler, as well as any other technological device, operates in a sufficiently difficult conditions. For this reason, it requires regular maintenance. And one of the most important procedures carried out during maintenance is flushing the heat exchanger gas boiler.
Basic washing methods
We should start with the fact that the heat exchanger is, first of all, a pipe system with liquid moving inside. But the water used in the systems is usually no different high quality. Various salts metals present in it settle on the walls of the structure, become scale and narrow the passage. There are three ways to deal with scale:
- mechanical;
- chemical;
- by pumping liquid into the system under strong pressure.
The article only discusses cleaning with your own hands, and therefore we will not talk about the third method. You definitely can’t handle it alone, since you will need a special compressor capable of creating a pressure of about 10 atmospheres. Only with the help of this device can deposits on iron surfaces be broken down.
Note! The other two methods can be handled with your own hands. Let’s say right away that this is quite difficult, and the appropriate skills will be required.
Video - Cleaning heat exchangers
Method number 1. Mechanical flushing
If this gas boiler heat exchanger flushing is used, do not forget that the exchanger itself takes up a lot of space in the heat generator. It is located above the combustion chamber, so it is not easy to get there. The algorithm of actions should be as follows.
Step one. The upper part of the housing is removed. To do this, you must turn off the electrical power and gas supply (if all this is provided for by the boiler design).
Step two. The exchanger is disconnected from the heating main.
Step three. The fixtures of the device are removed.
After this, you can remove the heat exchanger from the heat generator and proceed directly to the washing procedure. What can you see after dismantling? As a rule, all internal cavities are clogged with scale - metal salts, calcium or sodium, as well as trivalent ferum.
For cleaning you will have to use metal tools - pins, scrapers, and so on. During work, special care should be taken to avoid damaging the surfaces of the structure.
In some cases, the device is wetted in a container filled with a weak solution of hydrochloric acid. And as soon as the scale softens, you can begin to remove it. At the end of the procedure, everything internal voids washed with water under low pressure. For these purposes, you can attach a hose connected to the water supply system.
You can see for yourself how much dirt will spill out. You have to wait for it to start flowing pure water. Additionally, you can tap the surfaces of the device with a mallet (this is a special hammer made of wood or rubber).
Method number 2. Chemical washing
Let us immediately make a reservation that such washing is a rather complicated procedure. During the work you will need a special device called a booster. And despite the fact that this option is extremely simplified, to implement it you still need to know about a number of important nuances.
What is the simplification of the technique? First of all, there is no need to remove the heat exchanger and dismantle some elements of the gas boiler. You just need to disconnect a couple of pipes (a special hose needs to be connected to one of them, through which the cleaning agent will be supplied inside the housing). Having passed through the body, the product will come out through the second pipe, to which a hose will also be connected. Consequently, both in the exchanger and in the booster, the funds will move in a circle.
Now let’s look at what components the booster itself consists of. These include:
- chemical container;
- an electric heater (not all models have it, but people with experience advise purchasing just such models; this way the reagent will heat up, and being warm, it removes salt and dirt deposits more quickly and efficiently);
- pump.
Note! Such chemical reagents can be various kinds of solutions that are freely available on the domestic market. And the question of choosing the right reagent is the most pressing. In each specific case, it is necessary to take into account not only the degree of clogging, but also its type, as well as the material used in the manufacture of the heat exchanger.
What is the best way to wash the device?
Now let's figure out what is best to use for washing. Despite the fact that there are quite a lot of recommendations and instructions, the choice of a specific liquid should be treated with extreme caution. Most experts advise using saline solution for this purpose. This solution really effectively removes growths, but by its nature it is quite aggressive. Consequently, there may be a risk of destruction of the internal surfaces of the structure.
Note! In addition, there is information that the use of hydrochloric acid can lead to brittleness of the metal.
And here lemon acid, as it turns out, is not so dangerous for heating equipment. She does a great job with various types scale – no less effective than today’s popular reagents, including Xanax, Sillit, Detex and others. And if you promptly and, more importantly, competently care for all elements of the heating system, you can not only increase its performance, but also significantly extend its service life. Cleaning the heat exchanger is one of the most important operations, as we have already found out, will become a significant contribution to this process.
Features of washing plate heat exchangers
In this case, the exchanger still needs to be disconnected from the boiler and the external and internal surfaces. It's easiest to start cleaning from the outside. First, the device is filled with warm water, to which some kind of household product against scale, rust and so on. After some time, the product is washed off from the surface with clean water. It is most convenient to carry out this operation on the street, using for washing car wash, supplying high pressure water. In the absence of such a wash, you can ask car wash workers to carry out this operation, but do not forget that too much pressure can damage the plates.
After cleaning the outer surface, you can wash the inner walls of the structure (these are the walls of the curved pipe). This flushing of the gas boiler heat exchanger is different in that there may be a fairly thick layer of scale on the surfaces, especially if the previous cleaning was carried out quite a long time ago, or was not carried out at all, or if hard water is used in the system. Even dirt can end up inside, getting there along with the working fluid, especially in the absence of a cleaning filter.
Video - Cleaning procedure for plate exchangers
Why is it necessary to flush the heat exchanger?
Essentially, a heat exchanger is a metal (or cast iron) box in which a radiator is installed. This radiator is heated by the fire of a burner located outside and gives off heat to the circulation inside working fluid.
In the case of a clean heat exchanger, it will function with maximum efficiency, and almost all the energy received will be used for heating. But over time, the walls of the internal channels become covered with various kinds of impurities - salts dissolved in the liquid (scale). Typically, scale forms especially actively in the secondary exchanger of the boiler for 2 circuits if hard water circulates in the network.
The consequences of this kind of pollution can be the most unpleasant.
- The heat exchanger is overheating. In accordance with the operating diagram gas equipment The coolant supplied from the return pipeline must cool the internal surfaces of the heating element. And if scale forms, the heat exchanger overheats and the device, as a result, fails.
- The efficiency of the heating device decreases. Mineral deposits are known to have a fairly low thermal conductivity, which means more energy is required to heat the fluid. Consequently, fuel consumption increases.
- Heating equipment breaks down. Due to mineral scale on surfaces, the movement of the working fluid is difficult. This places an excessive load on the circulation pump, which, as a result, quickly exhausts its working life (in the absence of timely cleaning of narrowed passages).
As you can see, if you flush the heat exchanger in a timely manner, you can not only save a lot of money, but also prevent the failure of expensive elements. In addition, a minimum of gas consumption is ensured.
How often should the heat exchanger be cleaned?
When visiting thematic sites, you come across very conflicting information regarding how often the heat exchanger, and all other elements of the heating device, should be cleaned. As a rule, information about service intervals is indicated in the manufacturer's instructions for a specific model. But it should be remembered that the information provided is approximate and implies the fact that operation will be carried out to the maximum extent possible. favorable conditions. In fact, flushing the heat exchanger of a gas boiler is often required more often.
There are indirect signs by which it is possible to determine the degree of clogging of the heat exchanger. They are the ones that accompany the operation of the heating device.
- Fuel consumption has increased noticeably. According to statistics, in the case of internal scale on the surfaces of heating elements, fuel consumption can increase even up to 15 percent.
- The load on the circulation pump increases, it produces extraneous noise, and interruptions in operation are observed. All this indicates that flushing is required.
- The heating system's performance has dropped. The heating radiators take longer to warm up, the temperature of the working fluid in the return pipe is low, and the burner is on all the time. All these signs also clearly indicate that it is time to start flushing.
- Weak pressure in the tap and “barely alive” liquid in the supply system hot water They also say that there are definitely problems in the heat exchanger.
Note! Modern gas boilers are manufactured with long-term operation in mind, and spare parts for them are quite expensive. For this reason, cleaning must be started immediately upon detection of the signs described above, otherwise the cost of servicing the device will increase significantly.
Correct operation of the heat exchanger: what to do to make the device last as long as possible?
- First of all, the make-up valve must be positioned correctly. During the repair work fluid may drain from the system. Often, replenishment is carried out through a special tap. If this happened once, then it’s okay, but if this tap is located at the entrance to heating device and is provided cold water, then as a result, cast iron may experience a so-called “thermal shock” and simply crack. This happens due to the fact that cold liquid is supplied to the heated heat generator and the temperature jumps on a local scale, and cast iron, as you know, does not like this.
- You should not pour antifreeze into the system; as a last resort, use only a branded product. By the way, this costs about 600 rubles per liter. And if the area of the house is, for example, 250 square meters, then you will need about 200 liters of antifreeze. Of course, if desired, it can be diluted with water, but subject to strict adherence to proportions. For example, to obtain a liquid that will freeze at minus 25 degrees, the proportions are 1:1. Simply put, for the mentioned area you will need about 100 liters (read: 6 thousand rubles). Expensive - of course, but with such a coolant you will be able to protect yourself from possible problems for several years.
- Fill the system with softened water. As we have already found out, water hardness plays a key role in this matter. If the coolant is hard, then it will contain metal salts that can accumulate on the walls of overheated heat exchangers. This is almost the same as the scale that forms in a kettle.
Summing up a little
So, we found out that flushing the heat exchanger of a gas boiler (regardless of the chosen method) takes several hours and requires certain skills and knowledge. You can do this yourself, or you can entrust it to specialized companies. And you can check how well the cleaning was carried out both by indirect signs (increased productivity, absence of extraneous noise and overheating), and by means of a video probe inserted into the boiler body after washing. This will allow you to clearly see the quality of the result. The mentioned companies, by the way, provide such a service.
Cleaning or, as it is also called, washing the heat exchanger of a single-circuit or double-circuit gas boiler at home can be done with chemical or mechanically. Such cleaning is necessary in order to remove all internal deposits that can destroy the metal, and this will lead to disruption of the thermal process in the heating system itself. Then a problem will arise such as the supply of hot water to the main heating system - DHW. Therefore, prevention of scale and other deposits is carried out regularly.
When you need to clean a gas boiler: negative aspects
Gas boilers are currently becoming very popular and are in great demand. This is because such a device is very efficient and economical, and it can heat not only country houses, but also apartments. But in order for such a unit to work stably, without any interruptions, it needs to be regularly maintained.
A double-circuit boiler can be cleaned in two stages. The first of these is mechanical cleaning of soot from all external surfaces of parts and chimneys. The second stage is chemical washing of all parts from scale.
A double-circuit boiler needs to be cleaned more often than a single-circuit boiler, since mineral deposits accumulate on its walls more actively. Why do we need to clean the boiler, and what signs can indicate this to us?
Signs indicating cleaning of the AOGV or AGV boiler:
- Insufficient traction;
- The burner burns poorly or does not ignite at all;
- Less heat transfer;
- The boiler gains temperature very slowly;
- Looking through the viewing window, we found traces of soot.
You can flush any type of boiler yourself or go to a special workshop, where they will do everything carefully and correctly for you in a matter of hours. If cleaning does not help to cope with the above problems, then you need to repair the boiler.
How to clean a gas boiler: some nuances
Before you begin the process of cleaning a gas boiler, you first need to find out what parts will be involved in this. You will definitely need to clean: the gas filter, the burner with nozzles, the jet, the igniter, the firebox and the chimney. Each of these parts needs to be cleaned in a specific manner.
Scale can accumulate in the passages of the heat exchanger, but soot appears in the chimney and other smoke exhaust channels. It follows from this: in order for the boiler to operate without interruption, it is necessary to clean not only the main heat exchanger, but also all existing smoke channels, the flue, and the burner along with it.
When starting to clean a gas boiler, you need to know and take into account some nuances, without which high-quality work will not be possible. You need to know them in order to do everything correctly in the future, without any mistakes.
Nuances you need to know:
- When flushing the boiler, you need to make sure that it is disconnected from gas, water and electricity;
- When dismantling the heat exchanger, under no circumstances should the special sealing elements be damaged;
- The heat exchanger must be cleaned very carefully so as not to damage its thin tubes;
- It is imperative to check the tightness of all connections;
- All kinds of stabilizers must be added to aggressive solutions to protect metal parts.
Before you start cleaning a gas boiler from any company: Baxi, Aton or Vaillant, you must first disassemble the boiler so that you can get to each of the parts that we need. Disassembling the boiler is not at all difficult if you know its structure. You can do this yourself by reading the instructions carefully before doing so.
Step-by-step instructions on how to clean the igniter for a gas boiler
If the pilot light's flame is cone-shaped and bright blue in color, then we can conclude that this is normal operation. But if the fire has already acquired a yellow or orange tint, then this indicates that the igniter needs to be cleaned. You can clean the igniter yourself, but disassembling the entire boiler is not necessary.
The igniter is an automatic device for a gas boiler; it is used to ignite the burner. This part plays a major role in the operation of the entire device. From her normal operation the entire heat exchange process will depend.
The igniter, or also called the wick, should ignite very softly, without any popping noises. If you hear a small pop, like someone shooting, it means that the igniter has broken down or just needs to be cleaned.
Step-by-step cleaning of the igniter:
- We shut off the gas supply;
- We unscrew the igniter itself;
- We clean it thoroughly with a special metal brush;
- Then we blow;
- We install the part in place.
Before you start cleaning the igniter, it must be disconnected from the electricity. By doing regular maintenance of all parts, you will get a long and quality work of the entire unit and at the same time enjoy the warmth during the cold season.
Burner: do-it-yourself cleaning of gas nozzles
Burner in gas boilers of any type is the main part of the entire structure, since it performs the main function - fuel supply. Therefore, it is necessary to clean it once a year, before starting the boiler.
The burner and jets can be cleaned separately from each other, but it is better to do this together. When starting work, you need to check whether you have disconnected the device from the gas, and only then proceed to the cleaning itself.
The burner includes nozzles that also need to be cleaned. From such important detail depends not only on the heat in the room, but also economical consumption of all fuel, as well as the operational life of this device.
Clean the burner and its nozzles:
- Turn off the gas supply with the key;
- Remove the burner from the installation site;
- Unscrew the injectors;
- Clean the nozzles carefully with a brush;
- We clean the burner itself with a special brush, but its holes need to be blown out;
- Insert the nozzles into the burner;
- Place the burner in its original place.
You can also sequentially clean all other parts that are responsible for the operation of the entire boiler.
Owners of gas boilers have thought more than once that they would like the unit to work for a long time, be reliable and not create any serious problems during operation. These dreams can be turned into reality if one minor condition is observed during operation - it is necessary to carry out periodic inspections and small scheduled repairs if necessary. One of these scheduled activities is flushing and cleaning the gas heat exchanger.
This operation will allow the unit to return to its nominal efficiency. This part needs to be cleaned once every 2-3 years.
Why do heat exchangers need periodic cleaning?
During operation, soot settles on this element. Sometimes the soot layer is so thick that the boiler efficiency drops by almost half. As a result, the unit does not heat and the owner has to turn the device to full power. Prevention measures allow you to remove this soot. But scale also forms inside the gas heat exchanger. Because of this scale, the passage channel narrows significantly, and the coolant warms up much more slowly. This negatively affects the efficiency of the heating system and increases the load. In addition, energy costs are increasing.
To avoid problems with the equipment, it is recommended to clean the heat exchangers of gas boilers every three years. This process is a set of works that can be done with your own hands without special skills. The whole range of events will take from one and a half to four hours.
How to clean gas boiler heat exchangers
It is worth noting that this element It is a pipe system through the internal channels of which the coolant moves. Water is often used as a coolant, but it is rarely of high quality. The most salts quickly accumulate on the walls of the heat exchanger. different metals, which over time turn into scale. In addition to the fact that scale is a barrier to the passage of water, it can cause a sharp decrease in the temperature of the coolant.
Among all existing methods, allowing you to clean this part, you can select mechanical cleaning, chemical methods, as well as rinsing with water. The latter is supplied under high pressure.
Let's consider flushing the heat exchangers, which means the third option will have to be discarded. To implement it you will need a special powerful compressor. It is with the help high pressure dense deposits of metallic salts can be broken up and removed. The other two methods are quite suitable. Everything for them can be found at home or purchased in appropriate stores.
Mechanical cleaning
When choosing this option, it is worth remembering that the element itself in the boiler body takes up quite a lot of space. In most cases it is located above the combustion chamber. It's not easy to get to. To gain access to the gas heat exchanger, you need to dismantle the external parts of the housing. To do this, disconnect the gas hoses and electrical cords, if any. Next, the element itself is directly disconnected from the pipes. Finally, on last stage remove the fastenings.
After this, you can remove the part from the housing and start cleaning it. Immediately after dismantling, you can see that the internal cavities of the device are literally clogged various deposits. Often these are metal salts (sodium and calcium), as well as elements of the so-called ferric iron. Clean them with a metal tool - scrapers and pins will do. You need to work extremely carefully so as not to break the internal walls.
The device itself can be soaked in a bathtub or basin. A solution of hydrochloric or sulfuric acid is added to the water. When the deposits begin to soften under the influence of acids, they can be removed mechanically. Experts recommend that at the end of the procedure, rinse the heat exchanger inside with water pressure. A lot of dirt will come out of the outlet. You need to wait until clean water comes out of the heat exchanger. This washing can be supplemented by light tapping on the body.
Chemical washing
This procedure is quite complicated, but can be done at home. To do this you will need special equipment called a booster. Before carrying out, you need to know the nuances of the procedure. They exist, despite the simplicity of the process.
The process is simplified, and this simplification lies in the complete absence of any need to dismantle the heat exchanger. There is also no need to disassemble the boiler. To carry out chemical flushing, you just need to disconnect the pipes from the heat exchanger. A hose is connected to one, which will pump the flushing liquid. A hose is also connected to the second one. Liquid will come out of it. Inside the system of heat exchanger and booster, the flushing composition will move in closed loop. You also need to know how to flush the heat exchanger of a gas boiler. We'll consider possible means, which you can make yourself or purchase at the market or in a store.
What is a booster
It is a special tank that can withstand aggressive influences chemical substances. The device also consists of a pump and a heating element. This heater is not available on all models, but experts recommend choosing them for greater efficiency. This will allow you to heat up the chemical reagent, which will act much more efficiently when hot.
Flushing agents
On modern market chemistry there are many preparations suitable for cleaning and the choice must be approached carefully. It is made based on two factors - the level of contamination, as well as how the reagent will affect the metal from which the heat exchanger is made.
You can wash the gas heat exchanger yourself with citric acid. It copes quite effectively with removing minor deposits and scale. Sulfamic acid as well as adipic acid are also suitable. They are practical when washing is regular and contamination is insignificant. Hydrochloric acid is also used for descaling - it removes even complex thick layers of scale. However, here you need to take into account the materials from which the heat exchanger is made. There are also special gels on the modern market that need to be dissolved in water. They, unlike acid, are not so aggressive, and their effectiveness is high level, as the reviews say.
Experts recommend using a saline solution to flush heat exchangers for gas boilers. It is effective, but you need to be very careful with it. It will cope well with scale and deposits, but in itself it is quite aggressive. In addition to these funds, for gas heat exchangers Such branded formulations as “Sanax”, “Sillit”, “Dketex” and others are suitable.
Features of cleaning plate heat exchangers
These products also detach and clean the external as well as internal surfaces. It will be better and faster if you start cleaning from the outside. First of all, the device must be filled with warm water with the addition of a descaling and rust remover. Then after a while the liquid is washed off clean water. It is best to do this activity outdoors using a pressure washer.
After the outer surface is thoroughly cleaned, the internal parts of this element are washed. This operation differs from the usual one in that there is a thick layer of scale on the surface of the walls, which is larger than in conventional heat exchangers. Therefore, for this work you need to make every effort. It is important to clean the scale completely for better heat transfer.
Conclusion
Cleaning the heat exchanger of a gas boiler is only half the battle. Be sure to clean the boiler itself and the chimney of soot. Only after this can we say that complete prevention. This operation will significantly extend the service life of the heating system.
Having built Vacation home, every person thinks about how to effectively heat their home.
To achieve this goal, heating systems are installed, the main element of which is a heating boiler. Stable room temperature largely depends on the uninterrupted functioning of the boiler unit.
In order for the boiler to operate stably, it is necessary to carry out regular maintenance of the boiler equipment.
One of the types technical care is to flush the boiler unit from scale. In this article we will talk in detail about what scale is, as well as how to effectively get rid of its presence in boiler equipment.
Why does scale appear?
This type of contamination is the main problem in boiler operation. Scale forms wherever hot water circulates.
In other words, it settles as a hard layer on the inner walls of the boiler equipment.
What causes scale to appear? The reason for this clogging is very banal - the use of hard water as a coolant, which is well saturated with magnesium ions, calcium carbonate, iron oxide, as well as various other impurities.
When these elements interact with the internal walls of the heat exchanger, salts or bicarbonates are formed, which are the source of scale. It is also worth noting that important fact that on the walls that are covered with this contamination, scale will appear even faster and faster.
The result of such an increasing action will be a narrowing of the channels for coolant circulation, and this, in turn, leads to a loss of heat transfer and a decrease in pressure.
Important information: 1 mm of scale leads to an increase in fuel consumption by 10%!
Also, the negative impact of this pollution is that scale particles move freely throughout heating system and, getting into the heating elements, can render them unusable.
Therefore, the following recommendation is very important: removing scale in a timely manner will protect your heating boiler from breakdowns and malfunctions.
Signs of scale appearance
To understand when it is necessary to flush a heating boiler from scale, you need to know the signs of its appearance in a gas or other type of boiler.
These signs are the following important points:
- fuel consumption increases significantly with the same boiler operation;
- a characteristic crackling sound and micro-explosions are heard in the boiler unit;
- the heat exchanger overheats significantly (weak return water does not cool this device);
- heating elements heat up unevenly;
- circulation pump works with effort;
- low pressure warm water in the tap (this sign indicates the operation of a double-circuit boiler);
- increasing the time it takes to heat a room at the same outside temperature.
When to Clean
For heating a cottage or country house The boiler unit is fully operational heating season and at the same time – 24 hours a day.
This is a long enough period for the formation of a limiting amount of scale.
Also, unscheduled descaling can be carried out in the case when the above symptoms are detected in the operation of the boiler unit.
How to clean
Cleaning the boiler from scale is called flushing. There are two main methods for cleaning boiler units from scale:
- collapsible;
- in-place.
When using the disassembly method, you can sequentially dismantle parts that are contaminated with scale with your own hands. These parts are then placed in a container with a reagent for several hours. After this, these units are thoroughly washed with water and then put back in place.
The name of the in-place method speaks for itself, in other words, the boiler is cleaned of scale on the spot - without dismantling contaminated parts. In this case, cleaning the boiler unit from scale is carried out using special device, which is called a booster.
This device consists of the following components:
- container for chemical solution;
- electric fluid heater;
- circulation pump.
Flushing the boiler from scale using a booster is carried out in the following order:
- the boiler is turned off from the fuel supply or, in the case of a solid fuel option, the device is allowed to cool;
- water is drained from the boiler unit;
- disconnected from the heating system;
- the booster is connected;
- this device begins to pump the reagent through the boiler within 5–6 hours;
- the waste liquid is drained;
- the boiler is washed and connected to the heating system.
It is also worth knowing that for effective removal scale using booster rinsing, the entire volume of operations must be repeated several times.
the concentration of acid solutions for washing should be 1% per 1 mm of scale layer!
In this article, we tried to talk in as much detail as possible about how you can descale a boiler yourself. We hope that this information will be very useful for you.
Watch the video in which an experienced user explains how to descale a gas boiler yourself:
– scale formed on the heat exchanger, which must be cleaned and flushed periodically. As the layer increases, the boiler efficiency decreases. To improve performance, you have to increase power. This increases fuel consumption and accelerates wear of the unit.
A layer of scale prevents complete cooling of the heat exchanger. At one point, the unit will fail, or the circulation pump will burn out due to overload. How is the heat exchanger washed, what means can be used?
A signal to the user that it is time to clean the boiler - a decrease in heat transfer, an increase in gas consumption (). But it’s better not to let it get to that point: the thicker the layer of dirt, the more difficult it will be to deal with it yourself, and cleaning by professionals will cost a pretty penny.
Under normal conditions, cleaning the heat exchanger of a double-circuit boiler with your own hands is carried out every two years (). If the water is hard, more often. Special attention is given to a secondary heat exchanger through which hard tap water passes.
The second mandatory action is to remove soot that is deposited on the outer surface of the heat exchanger housing. There are no strict recommendations regarding the frequency of cleaning - the amount of soot depends on the quality of the gas used, on the efficiency of the supply filters, on design features boiler, etc.
The need for cleaning can be determined visually, or this work can be done along with internal flushing. Large accumulations of scale and soot together can reduce the thermal efficiency of the boiler by half.
If instead of water in heating circuit antifreeze is used, the regularity of cleaning depends on its brand: chemical components are added to some antifreeze liquids 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 operating conditions (water composition, etc.), which real life usually doesn't happen.
Cleaning methods
How to flush the heat exchanger of a double-circuit boiler at home? In some cases, disassembling the unit is required, while in others you can do without it. The purpose of dismantling is to provide access to heating element. When cleaning, disassembly can be done minimal costs, but this option is time-consuming and labor-intensive.
Sometimes partial disassembly is performed - for example, to clean the fire-tube heat exchanger of a floor-standing boiler from soot. The heat exchanger itself cannot be dismantled at home; access to it is freed up by removing the cover with the chimney outlet pipe.
How to remove a heat exchanger from a wall-mounted gas boiler? First they de-energize electrical unit, shut off the water supply, drain the water from both circuits and the expansion tank. After this, the heat exchanger is dismantled.
Flushing
How to clean the heat exchanger of a gas boiler from scale with your own hands? At small quantity Plaque inside can be treated by manual washing using a citric acid solution.
If there is a thick layer of scale, a washing unit will be required to ensure circulation detergent for a few hours. A 10-liter tank with a pump is suitable for this purpose (you can use a circulation pump from the circuit). Two hoses from the pump are connected to two heat exchanger pipes.
There are three cleaning methods:
- mechanical;
- chemical;
- hydrodynamic.
In the first case, you can use a brush, scraper, or vacuum cleaner to remove plaque. Heat exchanger parts are pre-soaked in cleaning solutions.
During chemical treatment, an acid wash solution is pumped into the system using a booster and driven through a heat exchanger for several hours. Acidic solutions are good at removing ferrous and carbonate sediment. At the end of cleaning, the product is drained and a neutralizing agent is added.
The hydrodynamic method is the injection of water with abrasives into the system under pressure. In this way, the internal surfaces are cleaned mechanically, but the cleaning efficiency is higher than when processed manually. Flushing can be done without dismantling the system, but it is quite expensive. When cleaning yourself, you need to monitor the pressure in the circuits 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 products for washing the heat exchanger of a gas boiler - Cillit, DETEX, Sanax.
Hydrochloric acid is more effective. But its use is more dangerous for both the user and the system. Concentrated acid can destroy the internal protective layer of the heat exchanger, as well as increase the fragility 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.
