There is a long list of impurities to be found in water entering a boiler. However, in the drycleaning and laundry industries, the major impurities affecting the operation of boilers are dissolved solids (known as TDS, or total solids) and oxygen which is dissolved in the city water entering the return tank. This oxygen combines with carbon dioxide to form carbonic acid, a destroyer of the metal in the boiler and piping throughout the steam/return systems. The concentration of acids in boiler water is indicated by the Ph (Ph-is a scale used to specify how acidic or basic [or alkaline] a water-based solution is). TDS and Ph levels indicate the condition of the treated water entering as well as inside the boiler, allowing us to adjust the blow-down frequency as well as the volume and timing of boiler compound addition to the return tank to prevent boiler damage.
Full Steam Ahead
My name is Bobby Patel, I introduce myself humbly before you as the new President of DLI. I sincerely thank my peers was putting me in this position.
About myself, I have a loving wife, Kamini and three terrific daughters, Shiya, Krisha and Riya.
I was born in a tiny village called Ode in Gujarat, India. I grew up in Zambia, Africa, where my dad practiced law. I immigrated to USA in 1986 with my parents, studied to be a Civil Engineer, and graduated from California State University, Long Beach. Being an entrepreneur at heart, while in college I dabbled in various businesses. I bought and sold used cars and sold the world-famous Ginsu Knives door to door. I also helped out at a family business, Alta Dena Drive-In Dairy, while working at a travel agency.
Moment with Mary: Gratitude & Awe
Grateful. We are hearing this sentiment a lot these days, even with what we have all endured and, unfortunately, continue to endure. I want to add my voice to this chorus. I am grateful for so much not only on a personal level but a professional level as well. This may seem strange with all the industry has suffered and all the unseen challenges still out there but I am overwhelmed by the resilience, fortitude, and just damn determination of DLI’s membership. Members came together, shared with one another, adapted to the current business climate, and as we are slowly pulling away from the pandemic, have found themselves in a better position to meet future business opportunities.
What Good Can Come of This?
By Don Desrosiers, Tailwind Systems
Maybe this whole COVID thing is close to being behind us. Hopefully the lessons learned will stay with us for a lifetime. Whenever something monumental occurs, it is very important to gather some sort of lesson from it. Sometimes it can take a very long time, especially when a lot of healing needs to happen first. When 1,500 people died on the Titantic in 1912, it took a long time for people in that era to make sense of the tragedy. Similarly, COVID-19 has killed more than four million people at the time of this writing. Eventually, we will want to know how many people it has saved. On a more local level, COVID-19 has cost you a lot and there needs to be a lesson in there somewhere. Twenty years ago I published a piece about 9/11. Here is what I wrote then:
DLI Launches New ‘Marketing Lab’ Program to Help Members Develop Marketing Ideas and Exchange Advice
Beginning June 16 & 17, members of the Drycleaning & Laundry Institute (DLI) began tapping into the wealth of experience of their peers DLI’s new Marketing Lab peer review group. In the group, DLI members develop marketing efforts together, or just help each other tweak current efforts. From plans to final pieces and implementation, members will present marketing ideas to a group of their peers for live, immediate feedback. Ideas shared in the group are available to all members of the group, giving members access to a collective idea machine. In-group collaboration will help make marketing pieces stronger.
How to Test Your Boiler Water, Part One by Bruce Grossman
In the past, companies supplying boiler maintenance chemicals like “BOILER COMPOUND” had representatives visit your plant, take water samples and analyze them to prescribe the proper blow-down procedures and how much boiler compound to add and when. However, the business model which provided this high-level service is no longer workable in most areas. Therefore, these test procedures must now be carried out by either sending samples to a lab for analysis or by onsite water testing by plant personnel. The purpose of this series of articles is to teach how to use modern testing devices to analyze the water samples and determine the proper balance of boiler chemistry and blow-down procedure. In this series of articles, I’ll teach the methods used to obtain, measure, and evaluate boiler water samples.
Continue reading “How to Test Your Boiler Water, Part One by Bruce Grossman”
Formulate Your Way to Success with Don Desrosiers, Tailwind Systems
Formulate Your Way to Success
By Don Desrosiers, Tailwind Systems
I received an interesting telephone call today that prompted the idea for this column. It’s all about math. You probably hated math in school and never thought you’d really need it. When the pocket calculator came out in 1974, you probably became certain that even if you did need math, you wouldn’t have to struggle with formulas. Sadly, neither Casio nor Radio Shack have built-in functions for g-force or moisture retention or anything else important to you. Continue reading “Formulate Your Way to Success with Don Desrosiers, Tailwind Systems”
DLI’s School of Drycleaning Technology Reawakens
After months of dormancy, DLI’s School of Drycleaning Technology is again offering in-person resident drycleaning courses this fall. The first General Course will run from October 4–22 and can be taken as a complete three-week course or in two parts:
- Introduction to Drycleaning Course: October 4–8, 2021
- Advanced Drycleaning Course: October 11–22, 2021
Register at DLIonline.org/Education or call 800-638-2627
Continue reading “DLI’s School of Drycleaning Technology Reawakens”
DLI Opens New Era in Professional Training with All-Virtual Stain Removal Course
DRYCLEANING & LAUNDRY INSTITUTE COURSES MAY HAVE BEEN INTERRUPTED DUE TO THE PANDEMIC BUT THAT DID NOT STOP THE INSTITUTE FROM OFFERING COURSES. Eighteen students recently completed DLI’s first-ever Virtual Stain Removal Course this spring. DLI’s School of Drycleaning Technology re-tooled the course to work in an online-only format and added extra flexibility to help students succeed in the course.
Continue reading “DLI Opens New Era in Professional Training with All-Virtual Stain Removal Course”
Open for Business with Jess Culpepper, DLI President
This past year will be remembered as one for the annals of agony and anguish, but the storm clouds are parting and brighter days lie ahead. According to gathered data and numerous firsthand accounts many in the dryleaning industry are seeing sales continue to climb and close in on pre-pandemic numbers.
Continue reading “Open for Business with Jess Culpepper, DLI President”