Cleaning utube heat exchangers can be difficult business. The main source of complication is the design, which incorporates 180 degree bends into the tubes. The bend of the tubes make it difficult for traditional tube cleaning methods to work effectively. Traditional high pressured water blasting with a flexible lance will be unable to clean the bend radius and will only be effective on the straight legs of the exchanger.
Projectile Tube Cleaning has an innovative solution for cleaning utube heat exchangers. Our process uses specially designed Utube projectiles, which are engineered to navigate the bend of each tube. The Utube Projectiles (seen here: U-tube Projectiles) are basically 
smaller versions of our patented Metal Projectiles. They feature a flexible plastic rivet for added bending ability when going around curves. The Utube tube cleaners are used in conjunction with our tube cleaning pumping system. The system uses safe, low pressure water, between 300-600 psi (20-42 bar), to propel projectiles down the full length of the tube. While the tube cleaner moves down the tube it scrapes off the deposit from the tube wall. Since the utube tube cleaners are able to navigate the ubends, operators can quickly and efficiently clean the full length of every tube.
Cleaning utube heat exchangers with this method is quick and effective. The first step is to set up the exchanger so that the 
rooting side (the side that the projectiles are shot into) is covered with a solid tarp. The tarp can be fixed to the exchanger with C clamps like the example in the picture. The next step is to test shoot some tube cleaners to make sure they pass through the tubes correctly. Load and shoot the projectiles in various locations of the exchanger including the inner most rows so that before beginning production you can be sure that the projectiles will successfully pass through the tubes. After test shots are complete, begin loading the projectiles into the tubes in an organized pattern. Load and shoot each tube until completion. On straight tube heat exchangers and condensers, the last step of our tube cleaning process is to light check the tubes for missed tube cleaners. With a utube heat exchanger this method is not possible and thus the operator should count the tube cleaners after each load and shoot to be sure each tube is clear. If a projectile becomes dislodged in a tube during the process, the operator can easily remove it by shooting the tube backwards with water to propel the tube cleaner out.
The video below shows the utube heat exchanger cleaning process in more detail:
If you have any questions about cleaning utube heat exchangers or anything else please do not hesitate to contact us:
Info@projectiletube.com
+1 724-763-7633
