Sammy

Heat Exchanger Modification

After installing a new heat exchanger for our Gen Set, we had no further issues. However, the primary issue of "stuff growing inside our heat exchanger" has not been resolved, and, because the Fischer Panda generator has it's heat exchanger in such an awkward place to service, we decided to modify our new heat exchanger so that it can be cleaned out with the minimal of fuss annually.
  We took our heat exchanger and removed the ends by "unsoldering", so that new ends could be attached that would allow for easy removal.
We attached some brass ends (by soldering) with a reducing thread and then used a threaded cap, and finally a threaded tail to give us our 19mm hose fitting.






In the picture to the right, you can see how easily it is now to remove the end caps to clean the internals of the heat exchanger. And with it's new mounted location, we should no longer have issues with our Gen Set shutting down to over heating.
Since we have been dealing with heat exchangers, we have learnt something. Heat exchangers made from copper and nickel last a lot longer than those just made from copper. All heat exchangers should have some provision for cleaning the "internals". A sacrificial anode is a must. A fresh water flush through the engine and heat exchanger before turning the engine off for prolonged periods, increases the life of the engine and heat exchanger.