Steam and hot water hoses for cleaning

Plants, workshops and farms are cleaned with steam and hot water: steam lances, washdown points, cleaning of tanks and equipment. The right hose depends on what it carries — steam or hot water — and on the pressure and temperature at the supply. Here is how to choose it.

Steam or hot water

For steam, use a hose rated for saturated steam:

• DELSTEAM 170 °C — 6 bar, up to +170 °C, textile reinforcement, ID 13–102 mm;
• DELSTEAM 210 °C — 17 bar, up to +210 °C, short-term peaks up to +232 °C, steel wire reinforcement, burst pressure 170 bar, ID 10–102 mm.

For hot water, DELSTEAM 10 D 120 °C is a delivery hose for hot water mixed with unsaturated steam, well suited to low pressure washers: working pressure 10 bar, −40…+120 °C, ID 10–60 mm. It is not made for saturated steam lines — for those use DELSTEAM 170 °C or DELSTEAM 210 °C.

Choosing a steam hose

Start from the steam pressure at the supply. The temperature of saturated steam is set by its pressure — about +165 °C at 6 bar gauge and about +207 °C at 17 bar gauge — so a hose rated for the pressure is also rated for the temperature. Superheated steam is hotter than saturated steam at the same pressure and can exceed the temperature rating of the hose. More in our article on steam hose pressure and temperature.

Not for high-pressure washers

High-pressure cleaners work at far higher pressures than these hoses: DELSTEAM 10 D 120 °C is rated for 10 bar and suits low pressure washers, DELSTEAM 170 °C and DELSTEAM 210 °C are rated for 6 and 17 bar. A high-pressure washer needs a hose made for it.

Handling and safety

Drain DELSTEAM 210 °C after use. Steam hoses need couplings made for steam service, fitted and secured properly: a steam hose that comes off its coupling is dangerous. Check hoses regularly for damage to the cover, bulges and leaks at the couplings, and replace a damaged hose. We assemble hoses with couplings and pressure test them: see hose crimping and assembly and non-destructive testing of hose assemblies.

Food plants

DELSTEAM 170 °C, DELSTEAM 210 °C and DELSTEAM 10 D 120 °C carry steam or hot water for cleaning; their data do not cover contact with food. For washdown of floors and equipment in food production there is DELSTEAM FOOD 170 °C: white, odourless and tasteless inner tube of food quality, hot water up to +100 °C at up to 21 bar, steam up to +170 °C at up to 7 bar, ID 13–51 mm. For lines that carry food products, see our food hoses: several of them can be steam sterilised at up to 110 °C for max. 30 minutes, for example DELFOOD MILK 10 D, DELFOOD MILK 10 SD and DELFOOD 10 SD.

What to send us for a quote

• medium: steam or hot water;
• pressure and temperature at the supply;
• inner diameter and length;
• couplings;
• quantity.

The DELSTEAM hoses in this article are supplied in coils — the coil lengths are in the size tables of the series — or cut to length. Send us the details via the contacts page.

See also: How to order a hose assembly: what we need to know.