2. Silver or light gray spots form within the dark areas.

This is caused by the carbon

being burned off.
3. These light gray spots will enlarge and cover more area.
4. As the coking continues red spots will begin to appear in the gray areas of the tubes.
In some cases the tube will take on a “mirror” finish that looks almost like a chromed
piece of pipe.
5. The tube will eventually start to bulge and then develop “pin hole” leaks. At this point
the tube is ready to rupture and immediate action must be taken.

Corrective / Preventative Actions

The most important thing is to keep the flames off of the tubes! If flame impingement is
noticed, the first step should be to adjust the burner causing the impingement to get the flame off
the tube(s).

• Check the burner air register to confirm that it is open. Then look at the gas tips and
determine if there is any plugging (see Figure 13) that would cause the flame to
impinge on the tube. If there is plugging then remove the tips and clean them. Be sure
the gas tips are properly orientated by looking at the burner drawing.

• Confirm that the excess oxygen and draft requirements are per the heater design
specifications.

Figure 13. Plugged gas tip due to coking.

If the heater cannot be shut down, there are three options:

1. Take the burner out of service or reduce the firing rate by manually closing the block
valve.
2. Increase the excess air to help cool the firebox.