Category 08 · CIP and cleaning

A CIP spray ball is sized by your pump, not by the tank.

CIP spray balls for bulk tanks, receiver jars and small vats, plus nylon parlour and pipe brushes sized to the tube they go down. Sold by inquiry to dairies and milk rooms across the United States, from the parts desk in Middleton, WI.

Spray balls per unitBrushes per dozenRated gpm at 20 psi

Stainless CIP spray ball inside a tank opening — A static ball on its drop pipe. Every hole has to stay open, and one blocked hole leaves a dry stripe on the shell.

Item 08.1

CIP spray balls

Static CIP spray balls in 316 stainless, drilled for a full 360° pattern or a 180° up pattern, with slip-on pin, tri-clamp or threaded connection.

A static ball has no moving parts, which is why dairies keep using them. It relies on volume. The solution hits the upper shell and sheets down the walls, so a ball that gets too little flow sprays a ring and nothing below it. The failure we see most is a new, bigger ball put on the same old wash pump. The ball is rated for 60 gpm, the pump delivers 35, and the bottom third of the tank never sees detergent at temperature.

The 360° ball suits closed tanks and vats with fittings, agitator blades and a manway to reach. The 180° up pattern suits shallow or open-top vessels where spray aimed downward would just drain straight to the outlet. We state every ball's flow in gpm at 20 psi at the ball, because that is what matters. Pressure at the pump is not the same thing once the supply line has done its work.

Pull the ball once a month and look through the holes against the light. Hard water and milkstone close them one at a time.

Price basisPer unit. Set by diameter, pattern and connection

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Spray ball options we stock
Detail	Options
Body	316 stainless, drilled
Pattern	360° full, 180° up
Ball diameter	1.5 in to 4 in
Connection	Slip-on with pin, tri-clamp, female thread
Rating	gpm at 20 psi at the ball
Wetted radius	Stated per model; check against vessel ID

Nylon pipe and claw brushes on a stainless wash sink — Claw, tube and long-line brushes, in use and due for a change.

Item 08.2

Parlour and pipe brushes

Nylon bristle twisted on stainless wire, for claw bowls, short milk tubes, long milk tubes, receiver jar ports and short pipe runs. Sold by the dozen, sized to the tube ID.

A brush should be about 10 to 15 percent bigger across the bristle than the inside of the tube it cleans. Smaller, and it slides through without touching the wall. Much bigger, and the bristle folds back and the wire drags on the rubber. A 5/8-inch short milk tube takes a brush of roughly 3/4 inch. We ask for the tube ID and pick it from there.

Stainless wire, because galvanised wire rusts in the hypochlorite and leaves specks in the claw. Nylon, because it holds its shape in hot water. Throw the brush out when the bristle tips go flat or splay. That is usually a few months in a daily parlour, sooner if it sits in the sanitiser bucket overnight.

Brushes are the backup, not the wash. A line that needs brushing every day has a CIP problem, usually flow, temperature or a slug that never forms.

Brush sizes by what they clean
Use	Tube ID	Brush diameter	Length
Short milk tube	3/8 to 1/2 in	1/2 to 5/8 in	12 in
Long milk tube	5/8 in	3/4 in	36 in
Claw bowl	–	1.5 in tapered	8 in
Pipe run	1.5 to 2 in	1.75 to 2.25 in	48 in on flexible wire

Price basisPer dozen of one size

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Coverage and flow table

A working guide for picking a static ball against the vessel you have. It is not a design calculation. For a vessel over 12 feet across or a tank with internal baffles, send the drawing.

Static spray ball flow at 20 psi and typical wetted diameter
Ball diameter	Pattern	Flow at 20 psi	Wetted vessel diameter	Typical use
1.5 in	360°	15–25 gpm	up to 5 ft	Receiver jars, small vats
2 in	360°	30–45 gpm	up to 7 ft	Small bulk tanks, cheese vats
2 in	180° up	20–30 gpm	up to 6 ft	Open-top and shallow vessels
3 in	360°	50–75 gpm	up to 10 ft	Mid-size bulk tanks
4 in	360°	80–110 gpm	up to 12 ft	Large tanks and silos, often in pairs

How a CIP order runs

Send three numbers
Pump flow, vessel ID and the connection size. For brushes, the tube ID and how many dozen.
We check the match
The desk checks the ball's rating against your flow and says so if the pump is short.
Price and lead time
A firm price by reply, usually the same working day.
Dispatch
Approved orders in by early afternoon usually ship the same day.

Who should look elsewhere

Rotary jet heads
Rotating tank-cleaning heads for big process silos need a service agreement and a spares plan. We keep to static balls.
Detergents and sanitiser
We sell the hardware. Your chemical supplier sets the concentration and temperature.
Designing a CIP skid
A whole wash system for a new plant is an engineering job. We can supply the balls it specifies.

CIP inquiry

Tell us the pump flow

Delivered flow in gpm if you know it, or the wash pump's plate details if you don't. Add the vessel diameter and the connection, or for brushes the tube ID and the quantity in dozens.

Parts desk: (608) 355-8791
[email protected]
8401 GREENWAY BLVD SUITE 600 · MIDDLETON, WI · 53562

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Delivery address or town and ZIP

Flow, vessel and connection

Notes

The desk may contact me about this inquiry. I have read the privacy notice and the terms.

No payment is taken here. The desk replies with stock, a price and a lead time.