Cleaning Tanks with Films

Q. After several cleanings, the tanks are still dirty and we are getting films. What do you recommend?

A. Films on tanks can be attributable to several possible sources. You should contact Alconox technical support to review your situation to get a more customized recommendation to your situation.

Please be prepared to answer questions about your cleaning experience as it relates to film forming.

• What do you know about the film?
• What does the film look like?
• Do you use tap water for rinsing?
• Does the film seem to be a residue of something being cleaned that is simply failing to be removed, or does the film seem to be something new being formed in the cleaning process?
• What detergent are you currently using?
• What are the details of your cleaning process: time, temperature, concentration of detergent, and rinse?

Films can be formed by a difficult to remove residue such as a silicon oil cleaned at too low a temperature such that the detergent just spreads the residue around but does not remove it. Films can be formed by using excess heat and the wrong kind of detergent to clean titanium dioxide containing creams such that you form white filmy titanate residues when cleaning. Films can be formed if you have organic acids and esters that can form insoluble calcium, magnesium or iron salts with an under-dosed or incorrect detergent when using hard tap water for cleaning.

We suggest you click on Ask Alconox with whatever details you have about your film so we can give you specific advice for your situation.