Fresh water generator cleaning without the chemical soak
Fresh water generator cleaning on this car carrier needed chemical soaking to shift scale from the plates, and each clean could take up to 24 hours. The plates were also vulnerable to build-up between cleans, and the maintenance time was affecting onboard efficiency. In November 2011 a HydroFLOW® HM120 was fitted to the four inch seawater feed pipe to the generator. Deposits then stayed loose and came off by hand, with no chemical soak at all. Cleaning time was cut by 90%, the plates stayed in better condition between cleans, and chemicals no longer had to be carried or handled for the job.
The Challenges
- Fresh water generator cleaning required chemical soaking to shift plate scale
- Each clean could take up to 24 hours
- FWG plates were vulnerable to scale build-up between cleans
- Maintenance time was affecting onboard efficiency
- Chemical stocks had to be carried and handled at sea
The Solution
- Unit installed: One HydroFLOW® HM120
- Installation point: seawater feed pipe to the fresh water generator
- Pipe size: four inch
- Installed: November 2011
- Previous treatment: chemical soaking of the plates at each clean
The HM120 was fitted to the seawater feed pipe, so all water reaching the generator plates passes the unit first. The signal disrupts the conditions that bond scale to surfaces, so any deposits stay loose. The chemical soak was dropped, and fresh water generator cleaning moved from a day-long job to removing loose deposits by hand.
