EMDDIESEL
New Member
- May 4,
- 5
-
New Hampshire
I am looking to get some new tube cleaning brushes for my Greenwood Aspen 175 Boiler. Normally i would simply contact Pro Fab and ask them this question but alas they no longer exist. The brush i have no is so badly worn i cannot accurately asses what the diameter was originally.
That being said, my flue tubes are 1-3/4 ID. What diameter cleaning brushes should i be buying? Obviously for the brush to be effective it needs to be larger than the tube interior diameter. But how much larger? All the online retailers i have found that sell tube cleaning brushes seem to be staffed with people who cannot answer this question. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!
dogwood
Minister of Fire
- Mar 22,
- 825
-
Western VA
EMDiesel, are you scouring the tubes with the brush by hand, or are you using the brush on a rod powered by a drill?
Mike
EMDDIESEL
New Member
- May 4,
- 5
-
New Hampshire
I was unable to find any manufacturer or dealer offering a brush in that size. Do you know of a source for a brush in that size?
EMDDIESEL
New Member
- May 4,
- 5
-
New Hampshire
EMDiesel, are you scouring the tubes with the brush by hand, or are you using the brush on a rod powered by a drill?
Mike
Presently by hand, but would love the ability to do both. The first set of tubes clean easily with a brush as their is little to no creosote. The second pass however has very heavy creosote that quickly builds up. I often run a 1-1/2 Selfeed bit with an extension down each of those tubes and while the bit will not clean close to the bare metal of the tubes, it's removes more then enough to allow a brush to get worked through. But the only brush i have is getting very deformed and that is why i need a replacement and welcome any other suggestions.
Bad LP
Minister of Fire
- Nov 28,
- 2,001
-
Northern Maine
I've seen many brushes in all sorts of sizes at MSC Industrial Supply.
EMDDIESEL
New Member
- May 4,
- 5
-
New Hampshire
I've seen many brushes in all sorts of sizes at MSC Industrial Supply.
Yes, i have been to that site, Granger and half a dozen other sites that carry boiler brushes as well as two manufacturers. I have yet to see any brush in a size 1-63/64. I even called a supply house and he said no part number exists from any brush manufacturer he carries in that size.
maple1
Minister of Fire
- Sep 15,
- 11,083
-
Nova Scotia
Methinks the 63/64 comment was a bit of friendly chain yanking....
Fred61
Minister of Fire
- Nov 26,
- 2,445
-
Southeastern Vt.
If I purchase a brush that is a little oversized I just grind it down with my bench grinder. I have a wide small grit wheel on my sharpening grinder that makes short work of the task.
dogwood
Minister of Fire
- Mar 22,
- 825
-
Western VA
There are two inch inside diameter heat exchange tubes on my boiler. I clean them with a two inch diameter boiler brush. The brush screws onto a 42" fiberglass shaft, turned by a drill. The brush easily moves around inside the tubes at high rpm's and quickly scours them clean.
The hand held steel brush that came with our Tarm boiler measures three inches in width. It is basically flat with steel bristles sticking out if it's shaft on either side. It was effective in cleaning the two inch tubes, but a pain to turn inside the tubes by hand.
I thought about getting a wider 2-1/4 inch boiler brush to use with the drill. But the two inch works fine, without need for the extra aggressiveness a wider diameter would bring. It's easier to turn in the tube and I didn't want to chew up the tubes either.
The two inch circular steel boiler brush fits into a standard 1/2" fitting on rods I had previously purchased from a local fireplace and wood stove shop. I also use the same fiberglass rods with six and eight inch brushes to clean out the boiler and fireplace chimneys.
Mike
Last edited: Dec 25,
salecker
Minister of Fire
- Aug 22,
- 2,431
-
Northern Canada
Hi Mike
Any chance you could take a pic of the brush you use and post it ?
Thanks
jebatty
Minister of Fire
- Jan 1,
- 5,796
-
Northern MN
dogwood
Minister of Fire
- Mar 22,
- 825
-
Western VA
Salecker, here's a picture of one I copied off Ebay under the "boiler brush" heading. The brand is Mill-Rose. They also make them without spaces between the spiral rows of bristles, see http://www.millrose.com/twisted-wire-brushes_flue-boiler-tube-brushes.php
Last edited: Dec 25,
Bad LP
Minister of Fire
- Nov 28,
- 2,001
-
Northern Maine
Methinks the 63/64 comment was a bit of friendly chain yanking....
I was going to write 1.984.
Bob Rohr
Minister of Fire
- Jan 9,
- 1,265
-
SW Missouri
If the tube ID is 1-3/4, I think that is the size brush you need. If you oversize you end up bending or crushing the staples that they use to build them.
I think getting the large deposits first as suggested then the brush to polish it out. I find increased rotation speed is better than oversizing the brush.
Mike Fromme
Burning Hunk
- Apr 18,
- 221
-
Maine
Methinks the 63/64 comment was a bit of friendly chain yanking....
You got me..it's really closer to 1-31/32"
https://www.blackwoods.com.au/part//brush-boiler-tube-sit-50mm-x-12-bsw
Mike Fromme
Burning Hunk
- Apr 18,
- 221
-
Maine
Here's what I use... Don't really know what size the boiler tubes in my boiler are though. Just jam it in and spin it as fast as my cordless will go. Takes about 30 seconds per tube once a year.
http://t.harborfreight.com/7-piece-grinder-brush-kit-.html
dogwood
Minister of Fire
- Mar 22,
- 825
-
Western VA
Mike Fromme said:
Takes about 30 seconds per tube once a year.
Don't know how you get away with cleaning those tubes only once a year Mike. The Tarm Solo Innova manual says they need to be cleaned when flue temps creep over 500F, or twice a month, whichever comes first I suppose. If I go over two weeks when burning twice daily in the winter, the flue temps start getting over 500F in right about that time frame, and then keep creeping up. After cleaning the tubes the flue temps drop right down to where they belong in the lower 400's. I'm curious what kind of flue temps you're seeing.
I'd love to not have to clean those tubes and turbulators so often. It's always extra time and mess when added to weekly ritual of cleaning the firebox and gasification chambers.
Don't mean to be side-tracking your thread EMDDIESEL. Hope you all had a good Christmas.
Mike
Last edited: Dec 26,
velvetfoot
Minister of Fire
- Dec 5,
- 10,202
-
Sand Lake, NY
What happens if something, like the brush, breaks off in the tube? Can you push it out?
Mike Fromme
Burning Hunk
- Apr 18,
- 221
-
Maine
On mine at least there is an ash clean out door below the tubes. So if the brush were to break off one could just push it down and out.
Truth be told I haven't cleaned the tubes in over a year. I use a magnetic flue pipe thermomenter. Runs at ~260 when I clean the tubes. Right now it's at ~300 mid burn. I'll clean them when I start seeing 350.
The Ultimate Guide to Surgical Instrument Cleaning Brushes
Using the right tool for the job is important, and one of the keys to effective cleaning is having the right
instrument cleaning brush. This article will review how to choose the correct size and style of a cleaning brush from the common styles available.
Cleaning brushes used in healthcare are designed specifically to remove soils from often delicate instruments/devices used during surgical procedures. Soils can range from easy to wipe off blood or mucus, to harder to remove bone chips or burnt on surgical lubricants.
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Choosing the right surgical cleaning brushes
Depending on the instrument/device you are cleaning, the brush you need may vary. There isn't a one-size-fits-all solution for manual cleaning, so the first step is to understand what you're cleaning. There are specific brushes designed to do specific tasks, and improper brush selection may lead to challenges for patients and providers including infections or instrument/device damage. Brush types include general, toothbrush, burr, channel, valve, and acetabular reamer brushes, to name a few.
Channel Cleaning Brushes
When cleaning lumened instruments/devices, you need to be able to clean the interior and exterior of the device. Channel style brushes support effective cleaning inside lumened instruments/devices, letting you guide the brush through the lumen while the bristles dislodge bioburden from hard-to-reach interior channels. Channel Cleaning Brushes are available in standard, acrylic or fan tip, flexible, heavy-duty, tapered, looped end, curved, and reusable handle channel brush options for your specific cleaning needs.
Standard Channel Brushes
For most basic lumened instruments/devices, standard channel brushes are effective at removing soils from the interior of the device. This is the most common channel style brush; ranging in size from 7 to more than 50 inches in length, with a variety of diameters available to fit your reprocessing needs.
Fan Tip Channel Brushes
Fan tip channel brushes have fanned bristles to help reach the ends of closed lumened instruments/devices.
Acrylic Channel Brushes
Similar to fan tip channel brushes, acrylic-tipped channel brushes provide an added level of safety against potentially scratching the instrument/device. This type of brush is commonly used on laparoscopic suction tubes or any straight lumened item.
Flexible & Curved Shaft Channel Brushes
Flexible brushes let you guide through angles and bends of suction tubes and reach the ends of open and closed-ended instruments/devices with an extended 25-inch length. Curved shaft brushes are already bent into a curve, while flexible channel brushes feature kink-free shafts and pull-through ability.
Heavy-Duty Channel Style Brushes
When maximum control is needed to effectively clean your most difficult lumened instruments/devices, such as scope ports, heavy-duty channel brushes are the right choice. Adding more protection, polypropylene brushes use chemically resistant, synthetic filament materials providing the bristles resistance to bacterial growth.
Tapered Channel Style Brushes
The tapered channel style brush offers a twisted wire-end design to ensure all parts of narrow tapered lumens can be reached.
General Cleaning Brushes
All Purpose Instrument Cleaning Brush
The Sterile Processing Department (SPD) doesn't only clean delicate surgical instruments/devices. General/all-purpose instrument cleaning brushes help address larger surfaces on items including bowls, and basins.
Toothbrush Style Cleaning Brush
Easily the most popular general instrument cleaning brush, the toothbrush cleaning brush offers single and double-ended options and is the "jack of all trades" when it comes to handling instrument/device exteriors including forceps, retractors, and box locks. The bristles can be metal or nylon and are designed for effective cleaning, with nylon being used on fine surfaces of delicate instruments/devices.
Valve & Port Cleaning Brush
A specialized brush is recommended for cleaning the valves and ports of instruments/devices. Used most often for cannulas, the valve brush lets you exercise the control gained by using a shorter brush length.
Reamer Cleaning Brush
Bone reamers are unique orthopedic instruments that require specialized cleaning. Using a reamer cleaning brush provides control and maximum cleaning coverage during manual cleaning.
For more Twisted Wire Tube Brushinformation, please contact us. We will provide professional answers.
Burr Cleaning Brush
The difference is the handle — burr brushes are built to withstand a high amount of force during manual cleaning. Unlike toothbrush style, the plastic used in a burr brush is extremely resistant to breaking/cracking under pressure.
Pipe Cleaner Brush
After cleaning, devices should be dry before being packaged for sterilization. Pipe cleaner brushes can help wick away moisture.
Selecting the Right Brush Size For your Medical Device
Choosing the right size and right brush is key to successful surgical instrument/device cleaning.
How do you know what size brush is correct for your instrument/device?
There are several tools available to confirm the correct brush size for your instrument/device, and knowing the right size is important when choosing a channel style brush.
French Catheter Scale (PR)
French Catheter Scale/Brush Gauge
(STERIS Part Number PR)
Tools like a French catheter scale offer a convenient way to determine the instrument/device diameter and help you select the most appropriate brush size for your needs. Using a tool like this, determine the diameter of your device then add 3mm: this is the ideal channel style brush you will need.
To know what length of brush you need, take the total length of the channel you are cleaning and add 5cm. This is the minimum length brush you should use, but you may end up using a longer one if that's what is currently available. The key is to not to use too short a brush.
When Should I Replace Instrument Brushes?
Brushes should only be used to reprocess a single instrument/device set. While brushes can be single use/disposable, some facilities may choose to clean, decontaminate, and reuse their instrument cleaning brushes.
The standards followed by Sterile Processing Departments don't specifically say when a brush should be replaced. So how can a facility determine that a brush is “worn” or “damaged”?
Inspect brushes for:
- Wear and tear
- Damaged bristles
- Bristles that are falling out, or missing
- Bristles that are left over in/on instruments
- Residual soil on brush after washing
- Bends or twists in the brush handle or shaft (Channel Brushes)
Ineffective removal of soils and biofilms may result in patient harm or damage to instruments/devices. Having the right brush for the instrument/device you are processing will help optimize your cleaning process and ensure effective cleaning. When a brush is damaged, broken bristles or stems left behind in the instrument/device can cause costly repairs or damage, as well as additional time for re-cleaning instruments/devices.
Explore STERIS Instrument Cleaning Brushes
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