When it's time to assess water treatment chemicals for a cooling system, what is your process? For many, it’s a simple "find the existing products and match them" While this "like-for-like" approach seems efficient, it can be a bit of a gamble.
A cooling system isn't a static object. It's a dynamic environment where water, metal, and air are in a constant, delicate battle. The product that worked "well enough" last year might be actively causing damage today, leading to spiraling energy bills, unexpected downtime, and costly equipment failure.
Effective water treatment isn't about matching a product code; it's about diagnosing the system's specific needs.
Relying on an old product spec ignores a critical reality: your system has changed. Even subtle shifts can render a previously effective treatment useless or, worse, harmful.
Drifting Water Quality: Your municipal or well water source isn't the same day-to-day, let alone year-to-year. Changes in mineral content (hardness, alkalinity), chloride levels, or pH can completely alter how the water interacts with your system, leading to new scaling or corrosion potentials.
Operational Changes: Did you increase production? Are you running the system hotter or for longer hours? These new operating conditions (like temperature, flow rate, and load) directly impact biological growth rates and scaling tendencies.
System Aging: An older system with minor, pre-existing corrosion is far more vulnerable than a new one. The old chemical program might not be robust enough to protect this aging metal.
Simply re-ordering the "same old stuff" is like taking medicine based on a five-year-old prescription. You wouldn't do it for your health, so why do it for a mission-critical asset?
When our technical team analyses a cooling system, we look far beyond the label on the last drum. A correct prescription involves a holistic audit of several key factors.
This is the baseline. We need to know:
Temperatures: What are the process-side and water-side temperatures? Higher temps dramatically increase scaling and corrosion rates.
Flow Rates: Are there "dead legs" or low-flow areas? These are breeding grounds for biofouling and sediment buildup.
Load: Is the system under a heavy, constant load, or does it cycle frequently? This affects how treatment chemicals are consumed.
This is arguably the most critical factor. We should understand the chemistry of the makeup water (the water entering the system) to understand what we're fighting against. Key tests include:
Hardness (Calcium & Magnesium): The primary source of limescale and a key piece of information for selecting the correct inhibitor.
Alkalinity & pH: Governs the water's tendency to be either scaling or corrosive.
Chlorides & Sulfates: Highly corrosive elements that can attack stainless steel and other metals.
Silica: A notoriously difficult scale to remove.
What is the system made of? A treatment program designed for mild steel pipes will aggressively corrode a system containing copper or aluminum components. The chemical formulation must be compatible with every metal it touches.
The needs of an open cooling tower (exposed to the air) are completely different from a closed-loop system.
Open towers are giant air scrubbers, constantly bringing in dust, pollen, and microbes. Their primary battle is controlling biofouling (like algae and Legionella) and managing the concentration of minerals left behind by evaporation. Evaporative condensers and cooling towers may also require different approaches.
Closed loops are sealed, but they face challenges with stagnant water, general corrosion, and the growth of specific anaerobic bacteria that can destroy pipes from the inside out.
What are your site's discharge regulations? Do they have internal "environmental" initiatives? We select treatments that not only protect your asset but also ensure you remain compliant, whether that means using low-phosphate products or chemistries that are safer for discharge.
Choosing the right treatment program is a technical decision, not an administrative one. This is where our resources become your advantage.
There is no need to guess or copy-paste. A properly treated system runs more efficiently, uses less water and energy, and lasts decades longer.
Start with our Product Guide: Our comprehensive guide is an excellent resource for understanding the types of chemistries available for different challenges—from scale and corrosion inhibitors to biocides. It can help you ask the right questions.
Lean on our Technical Team: The guide is the map, but our highly experienced and knowledgeable technical team are the expert guides. We are trained to perform the deep analysis described above. We can advise and recommend a program that delivers peak performance, asset protection, and peace of mind.
Contact our team today to see how we can help, Technical Support Team on +44 (0)1327 709 439 or email us ownlabel@bvwater.co.uk