© 2022 Staheli West
66
Blowdown System
The Blowdown System will prompt the operator to start a blowdown once every 250 gallons of water. Once a
blowdown has commenced, the blowdown actuator will open, allowing the skimmer tube to remove some of the
foamy contaminated water. The blowdown should expel 1.9 gallons per minute. The contaminated water then
travels through the blowdown hose to where it is routed behind the baler pickup. There the contaminated water
should be safely discarded on the ground. If the supply water level sensor is faulty, the blowdown system may
not function properly and foaming and water carryover may result. A blowdown can last several minutes. It is
important to let the blowdown finish its cycle whenever possible. The length a blowdown lasts is dependent on
the PPM setting. The higher the PPM, the longer the blowdown. It is recommended to route the rear blowdown
hose behind the baler pickup and where it will not spray on the baler tires. Hot blowdown water has been known
to cause premature wear on baler tires.
The purpose of the blowdown system is to prevent water from carrying over into the steam hoses and into the
hay. The blowdown actuator opens and purges contaminated water out of the boiler.
A manual blowdown is performed each day as part of the pre-operation maintenance. The operator should drain
30-40 gallons out of the bottom of the boiler by opening the boiler drain valve. When the DewPoint machine
has not been running for a while, the contaminants in the water will settle to the bottom of the boiler. This
manual blowdown is a method of getting rid of the contaminants. While operating the machine while the water
is boiling, the highly concentrated water will rise to the top. The surface blowdown that the operator performs
while running the machine removes highly concentrated water from the surface of the boiling water.
Behind baler pickup
Not spraying tires
