Chlorine tablets in A/C system.

[sailingforfun]

Is there any long term issues with placing chlorine tablets in an A/C system?

I was recently instructed to keep placing chlorine tablets in my A/C system at the intake fitting where the filter screen is. This is suppose to keep all the little critters from growing and clogging up the A/C line. I'm just concerned about other issues since chlorine is pretty strong stuff. Thoughts?

[a64pilot]

I wont do it, chlorine is a very strong oxidizer, and I feel sure will accelerate the corrosion of metals and plastics, rubber etc.
Trust your instincts

[Sailmonkey]

Chlorine hardens plastics as well as accelerates oxidation of metals. It's not a good idea.


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[Tortuga's Lie]

I don't think the copper tubing would appreciate it much, plus the copper is naturally an anti-fouling metal.

[meridian28]

I purchased a bag of 1/2" copper elbows at Lowes. I drop a few in the A/C strainer.


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[Tortuga's Lie]

Originally Posted by meridian28

I purchased a bag of 1/2" copper elbows at Lowes. I drop a few in the A/C strainer.


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Interesting method! Might have to try that one. I guess it couldn't hurt the flow too badly

[akopac]

Vinegar.

[rwidman]

Originally Posted by sailingforfun

I was recently instructed to keep placing chlorine tablets in my A/C system at the intake fitting where the filter screen is. ........

The question is, who instructed you to do this and what are his/her qualifications?

I think I would ask the manufacturer of the AC unit.

[thinwater]

Originally Posted by rwidman

The question is, who instructed you to do this and what are his/her qualifications?

I think I would ask the manufacturer of the AC unit.

Bingo.

Do you have any reason to believe there is anything growing in there? As others have said, not much grows on non-bonded copper.

Additionally, periodically turning off the AC and closing the seacock will deprive the critters of O2, which will kill the rest. For those that winterize, the glycol will to it.

[sailorboy1]

There are "pad guard" tablets you can get st hardware stores that are quays and not corrosive. Better choice I feel over chlorine tablets

[svHyLyte]

Originally Posted by meridian28

I purchased a bag of 1/2" copper elbows at Lowes. I drop a few in the A/C strainer.

In a similar vain, I occasionally pick up a few feet of grounding foil and periodically wrap a few inches around a pencil to form a loose coil, cut that free and drop it in the strainer basket (sans pencil of course) where it dissolves over a period of a few weeks. This trick also works well with the raw water filters for our heads.

FWIW...

[a64pilot]

Does copper really work? I ask as I have seen bare copper in water and it grows barnacles and "stuff" on it just like everything else.
I believe it used to be that ships were sheathed in copper to keep the worms out of the hull, and that did not work as an antifoul? I think some vessels still have copper sheathed rudders and the like?
We have a member with a Dutch barge I think that has a copper sheathed rudder

[Tellie]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

Does copper really work? I ask as I have seen bare copper in water and it grows barnacles and "stuff" on it just like everything else.
I believe it used to be that ships were sheathed in copper to keep the worms out of the hull, and that did not work as an antifoul? I think some vessels still have copper sheathed rudders and the like?
We have a member with a Dutch barge I think that has a copper sheathed rudder

Water has to flow by the copper surface at a certain rate to effectively prevent internal line growth. We have been installing the Bio-Guard system for years on yachts that run their AC systems 24/7.

Fighting bio invasion - Ocean Navigator - May/June 2009


Halden Marine Services – Marine Watermakers, Solar Panels, Wind Generators

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

Does copper really work? I ask as I have seen bare copper in water and it grows barnacles and "stuff" on it just like everything else.

I have a copper elbow in our AC strainer, but I can't tell if it works or not... or if it works, whether that means "a little" or "sometimes" or "quite a lot" or whatever.

I don't see much in the way of barnacles in there, though, so maybe it helps.

Our problem more often is sea nettles (jellies) and mud being sucked in... jellies occasionally and mud usually... and the copper probably doesn't do anything about either of those.

For OP, I've read that bromine tablets are safer than chlorine tablets... but I don't have first-hand knowledge about whether they are indeed safer, whether they work at all, etc. Tablets probably wouldn't do much for our jellies/mud issues, so I haven't tried any...


Another reason I haven't tried is that, if I have to open the strainer to add a tablet... it's just about as easy to just clean the strainer.


One other thing that helps more seriously, is to periodically clean the whole system out with something like Rydlyme or Barnacle Buster or whatever.


-Chris

[svHyLyte]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

Does copper really work? ...

I believe that depends upon the purity of the copper. Copper pipe must be alloyed with other material to prevent erosion/dissolution or it wouldn't make very good/long lasting pipe. I'm guessing that the foil has a much greater copper content as it does seem to dissolve over a relatively short period. Copper sheathing on hulls does seem to become laden with slime if the boat isn't moved very often although copper coating for anti-fouling is, or once was, quite an effective treatment although that's now become a no-no in some venues.