Tube cleaning

The reasons for the single use are primarily the elimination of infection risks but also the fact that cleaning would be very expensive and, particularly with cheap mass products, out of all proportion in terms of cost.

Only the strict observance of rinsing instructions and an exact control of the admissible residue tolerances can remedy things here.

Generally the process of chemical tube cleaning is applicable for any diameter, however practical limits of use ensue from the volume of a pipeline.

In the most simple case it is a matter of a brush that is moved in the tube by means of a rod or a flexible spring (device).

[citation needed] Passive cleaning bodies may be a matter of brushes or special constructions like scrapers or so-called "pigs", for instance, which are conveyed through the tubes by means of pressurized air, water, or other media.

The types range from brushes with bristles of plastic or steel to scrapers (with smaller tube diameters) and more expensive designs with spraying nozzles for pipelines.

Also belonging to this field is the cleaning of obstructed soil pipes of domestic sewage systems that is done by means of a rotating, flexible shaft.

For the chemical or pharmaceutical industry, specially adapted cleaning bodies are imaginable but the conveying media flows are so weak that off-line processes are employed in most cases.

In the case of sponge rubber balls this is done through special strainer sections; for scrapers or pigs an outward transfer station is provided.

[citation needed] In thermal tube cleaning the layer or deposit is dried through a heating whereby it flakes off due to its embrittlement and is then discharged, either by the conveying medium or a rinsing liquid.