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Quotes - Engineering - SalesFixed vs Removable Bundles
In a fixed-bundle aftercooler the tubes are rolled into tubesheets welded to the shell; in a removable-bundle unit the whole bundle slides out.
The fixed bundle is the standard IPAC construction and the F in a long-form number such as W0110FA000. It is the more compact and less expensive build, and with compressed air in the tubes and clean cooling water in the shell there is rarely a reason to open it: the tube side can be flushed through the heads and the shell side chemically cleaned in place.
Which Bundle?
Ask what the cooling water leaves behind.
- City or treated closed-loop water: fixed (F)
- Tower, river or well water: removable (R)
- Compressor that cannot stop for cleaning: removable, with a spare bundle
- Replacement: match the letter on the nameplate
When the Shell Side Fouls
The removable bundle - R, as in W007-0RA000 - is specified when the shell side will foul. River, tower or well water leaves scale and silt on the outside of the tubes where no flush reaches, and the only real answer is to pull the bundle and clean or replace it. A removable bundle also allows the shell to stay in the piping while a spare bundle goes in, which matters on a compressor that cannot be down for long.
Space, Weight and Interchangeability
Removable-bundle units are longer and heavier than fixed units of the same capacity and need clearance at one end equal to the bundle length. Both constructions carry the same pressure classes and code options, and a fixed unit can usually be replaced by a removable one of the same size if the space allows.
| RANGE | TYPE | COVERS | RATING |
| Water-Cooled 51 Series | Water-Cooled Aftercooler | Fifteen shell and tube models from 38 to 4,785 SCFM, all 51-1/8 inches long | 200 PSIG (300 PSIG small NPT units) |
| Water-Cooled 59 Series | Water-Cooled Aftercooler | Nineteen close-approach models from 37 to 11,970 SCFM, all 59 inches long | 200 PSIG (300 PSIG small NPT units) |
Common FAQs
Usually, if the space allows. Both carry the same pressure classes and code options; the removable unit is longer and heavier and needs clearance at one end equal to the bundle length.
Flush the tube side through the heads and clean the shell side chemically in place. With compressed air in the tubes and clean water in the shell that is normally all it ever needs.
F is fixed and R is removable - the fifth character of the long-form number, as in W0110FA000 or W0070RA000. Match the letter on the nameplate when replacing.
Related Pages
Model Number Guide
HiROSS, long-form and reseller numbers mapped to the current catalogue number, with the model number guide.
READ
Helical Tube Design
What IPAC's patented helical extended-surface tube does inside a water-cooled aftercooler, and when a plain tube is specified instead.
READ
Water-Cooled 51 Series
Fifteen shell and tube models from 38 to 4,785 SCFM, all 51-1/8 inches long.
READ
