Maintenance
35
WaterFiltration
ThepurposeofwaterfiltrationistokeeptheIce
Flakercleanandoperatingefficiently.
Thevaluetotheuserisreducedoperatingcost
duetolessmaintenance,improved
performanceandagreaterreturnon
investmentasresultofextendedassetlife.
Therearethreeprimarycategoriesof
contaminantsthatdamage
andcausetheIce
Flakertooperateinefficiently.Theyarelisted
hereinorderofimportancewithregardto
impact.
1. Scale
2. Sediment
3. Chlorine
Scale
Scaleorfoulingistheaccumulationof
unwantedmaterialonsolidsurfacestothe
detrimentoffunction.Scaleisprimarilymade
upof
calciumandmagnesiumhardness
compounds.
It’sestimatedthatscaleisresponsiblefor70%
ofunscheduledmaintenance,inefficient
operation,anddowntime.
Scaleformsonwettedsurfaces,accumulatesin
tubingandfittingsandinterfereswith
operation.
Sediment
Theformationofscalefromdissolvedminerals
ismadeworsebysediment.
Sedimentissuspended
particlesofdirt,siltand
otherfineparticulatematterthatactasa
catalystforscaletoform.
Sedimentcanbedetrimen taltothecondition
andperformanceoftheIceFlaker.Particulates
causeaddedwearonpartsandcanclogvalves
andimpedeflow.
Theeffectsofscaleandsediment
canbevery
destructivetotheIceFlaker.
Chlorine
Chlorineisthemostcommondisinfectantused
tokillpathogenicorganismsinordertomake
ourwatersafetodrink.However,residualfree
chlorineinwatercancontributetopitting,rust
andcorrosionofstainlesssteel.
Ifnotremovedfromwater,
chlorinemixeswith
moistureintheIceFlakerandIcebintoforma
mildhydrochloricacid.Thisacidcancause
surfacerusttoformonstainlesssteelsurfaces
inonetotwoyears.