how best to clean small seawater strainers?

[vpbarkley]

I have a Sherwood seawater strainer for my AC units that's difficult to clean.

With use, buildup collects on the cylindrical, stainless screen element and on the inside surface of the clear plastic container.

The inside diameter of the screen strainer element is about 2.5" i.e. too small to fit ones hand through.

I used stainless steel wool. But, this tended to snag on the edge of the screen. And, cleaning inside the strainer element was both challenging and ineffective.

I'm interested to know what you use to clean these and engine strainers too.

Thank you.

[tkeithlu]

I've got one like that on my home cistern system. I blow it out with compressed air, going opposite to the direction of the water flow, since it stuck on the first surface it reached.

[thinwater]

The problem with cheap strainers is that they use wire screen instead of perforated metal. The debris catches in the corners instead of wiping out cleanly. Just a money-saving shortcut.

[Nicholson58]

I fill the bowl with the strainer in it with Clorox pretty strong and let it sit a while. Use an old tooth brush to scrub out the debris.

[thinwater]

Scrub the outside first with a wire brush or scrape with the back side of a knife. This will shear any fibers that are stapled through. VERY important. Then a small scrub brush or wire brush in a rotary manner, not back and forth. You want to PULL the fibers out, not scrub them in. And as others have said, rinsing from the outside helps. The whole operation shouldn't take a minute or two if done efficiently.



I don't want to think how many thousands I have cleaned in chemical plants.

[GreenWave]

Toothbrush or bottle brush works for scrubbing inside. A soak with some cleaning agent will remove the scum.

[sailorboy1]

I use a wire brush and then rinse it off