Is anyone on this forum familiar with the boiler chemical treatment produced by NALCO? If I remember correctly it is an American company. Our group has had some issues with the chemical we are currently using and we would like to get away from it as soon as possible! We have heard many positive things about NALCO from the state railway museum, but their supply is all old stock and they have no idea where to get more. The product has been described as being balls of chemical powder with a brown tint that appear to be held together by what was described as tree sap from the translation I was able to make. Any ideas?

Please see this prior thread:
http://www.rypn.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=35653&hilit=boiler+water+treatment

Mike Tillger

Thank you Mike, very interesting, but not what I am looking for. We know the issue with our boiler to be large build up and deposits of calcium, not micro fracturing or oxygen deposits. Denmark is known for its very hard water, and it is very hard to control. The chemical we are currently using is not very successful, and has even proved to be damaging. It allows for a thick layer of calcium to build up on the flues and boiler tubes, creating an insulating effect that leads to the burning of the steel in small areas.
The state railway museum has had the same experience 12 years ago, but they were unwilling to share the information with us until this year. Since that time, they have completely replaced all of the flues and tubes in their similar locomotive and started using the NALCO product. Our flues and tubes are only seven years old with five years of service on them. We have already had to replace three flues since the beginning of service in 2009.
Our group had previously thought it was an issue with the quality of the steel until I mentioned the idea of the calcium allowing the steel to burn. We had to have a professional company come in two years ago to remove the thick calcium deposit from the boiler. When I removed the washout plugs for our major washout this year, the boiler was very clean looking inside. Unfortunately most of the burning of the steel occurred before the calcium removal two years ago.

This is why we are looking for the NALCO product. The papers and research given to us by the state museum went into detail about the research and effects of the two products. They found the NALCO to be very effective, reduce the amount of washouts needed, and prevented the tubes from being burned.

Why not contact Nalco directly:

http://www.nalco.com/aboutnalco/denmark.htm
http://www.nalco.com/applications/boiler-water-treatment.htm

I do not believe the elephant balls are available as a stock product. Many years ago I used old stock and they worked well. I don't believe a one step answer to your problem exists in this day and age. Good Luck in your search.

Mike Tillger

Hi,
I do not know how much water is used. Here in the Netherlands we also have hard water and at least two of the heritage railways use a little chemical plant that delivers saltfree boiler water. Since they drive mostly during weekends the capacity is small as it may take a week to produce the water for the weekend. The idea is ion-exchange and then reverse osmosis. We hate chemicals in boilers overhere. I have a picture of a tube recently taken out and in use since 1991,flawless!
Kind regards
Jos Koopmans

I had a hard water problem in Colorado using snowmelt from the mountains as feedwater. We installed a common commercial water softener in the line which fed our water storage tank which did a lot of good, eliminating probably 95% of the scale found during boiler washes. Our specific circumstances also included the use of an oxygen scavenger and additives to keep scale in suspension, and we scheduled the frequency and extent of blowdowns based on daily testing of boiler conditions.

Everybody has their own set of circumstances to define and work with. I'd recommend finding a good testing lab who are not tied in with water treatment suppliers to provide you with good reliable information and recommendations as a place to begin. The suppliers seem to always find their recommendation include buying more of what they sell..........whether you need it or not.

dave

Glad I'm not the only one with that thought - I've heard more than once, "the chemical guy says we need this amount of chemicals x, y, and z." To which my response is always, "what's the chemical sales rep's job?" Answer for the brain dead: sell chemicals.

Proper water treatment involves training staff in daily water testing to determine what is needed and being able to evaluate your testing information. I'm not even close to as knowledgeable as many other RYPN readers on boiler water chemistry, but I do know that boiler wash and annual inspections tell the tale, not the chemical salesman.

Nalco has been around a long time, is a reputable company, and in my experience they provide excellent support services.

Based on my experience in tracking down water treatment for diesel locomotives from vintage product numbers, you are indeed correct with regard to Nalco. Their reps are always very helpful.