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Condenser Retubing

Full or partial retubing of surface condensers whose tubes have started to leak or lose heat transfer after years of vibration, corrosion and fouling – from tube pulling and tubesheet cleaning to installation, expansion, trimming, seal welding and testing.

Working on tube ends inside a condenser

The condenser is one of the key auxiliaries in any thermal or nuclear unit. After years in service, vibration and corrosion take their toll: tubes start to leak, heat transfer falls off, and condenser vacuum and unit efficiency suffer with it. At that point the condenser usually needs retubing.

Our crews have retubed stainless steel and titanium condensers on 1,000 MW, 600 MW and 300 MW units for dozens of Chinese power construction companies. The tools they use to install, expand, trim and weld the tubes are designed and built by Lanbo, and several are patented.

A case in point

In February 2009, working for Guangdong Thermal Power Construction Co., we tubed the condenser of the 1,000 MW unit at Sanbaimen Power Plant in Raoping: close to 40,000 titanium tubes. Expanding, trimming and welding took 15 days, and the condenser passed its hydrostatic test on the first attempt with no leaks. That is one project; the schedule for any other job depends on its own conditions.

Equipment and tube materials

  • Surface condensers on thermal and nuclear units (our references run from 6 MW to 1,000 MW)
  • Partial (section-by-section) or full retubing, and condenser retrofits
  • Tube materials: stainless steel, titanium and copper alloy – all three appear in our project references

Don't see your equipment here? Ask us.

Work sequence

  1. Site survey: confirm tube count, size and material, tubesheet condition and the outage window; prepare the method statement
  2. Cut and pull the old tubes (hydraulic or manual tube pullers)
  3. Clean and inspect the tubesheet and tube holes
  4. Install the new tubes
  5. Roller-expand the tubes into the tubesheet to seal the joints
  6. Trim and face the tube ends
  7. Seal-weld the tube ends where the design calls for it (automatic orbital TIG available)
  8. Leak testing, dye penetrant testing (if specified) and hydrostatic test
  9. Compile and hand over the QA documentation

Schedule

The schedule depends on the number of tubes, the tube material, whether the tube ends are welded, site conditions and the outage window. We build the schedule around these before mobilizing; the contract sets the final dates.
One reference point: on the 1,000 MW unit at Sanbaimen, Raoping (2009), expanding, trimming and welding nearly 40,000 titanium tubes took 15 days.

Quality control

  • Tube holes inspected after cleaning, before the tubes go in
  • Leak testing of the tube joints (vacuum leak testing available)
  • Dye penetrant (PT) testing where the design or owner requires it
  • Hydrostatic test
  • Work records and QA documentation handed over at completion
  • Any further testing per the design documents and contract

Photos

Maintenance and cleaning on a condenser auxiliary
Maintenance and cleaning on a condenser auxiliary
Crew working on condenser tube ends at the tubesheet
Crew working on condenser tube ends at the tubesheet
Tube-end work on a condenser tubesheet
Tube-end work on a condenser tubesheet

Related projects

10 projects listedSwipe to see all columns

Industry Project Unit rating Date Tube material Scope
Nuclear Power MSR Painting and Pre-shipment Packing, A/B (Harbin Turbine) 2 units Dec 2025 Packing
Thermal Power Tube-End Cleaning, Installation, Expanding, Facing & Welding, WB2025-LB-07Q (Hangzhou Guoneng) 3 units Dec 2025 Stainless steel Retubing
Thermal Power Gland Seal Tube-End Expanding, Facing & Welding (Ningbo Hengfei Machinery Technology Manufacturing Co., Ltd.) 2 units Dec 2025 Stainless steel Retubing
Nuclear Power CGN Lufeng Units 1, 2, 3 & 4 (Harbin Turbine Co., Ltd.) Oct 2025 Titanium Cleaning, tube installation, expanding & welding
Thermal Power Tube-End Cleaning, Installation, Expanding, Facing & Welding, WB2025-LB-05Q (Hangzhou Guoneng) 6 units Oct 2025 Stainless steel Retubing
Nuclear Power LP Feedwater Heater Tube Installation and Cleaning, Changjiang Unit 3 (Harbin Turbine Co., Ltd.) 4 units Sep 2025 Titanium Tube installation and cleaning
Nuclear Power LP Feedwater Heater Retubing, Changjiang Unit 3 (Harbin Turbine Co., Ltd.) 4 units Jul 2025 Titanium Retubing
Nuclear Power Unit 1 Condenser Shell Assembly, CGN Lufeng (Harbin Turbine Co., Ltd.) 1,000 MW Jul 2025 Titanium Assembly
Thermal Power Tube-End Cleaning, Installation, Expanding, Facing & Welding, WB2025-LB-04Q (Hangzhou Guoneng) 1 unit Jul 2025 Stainless steel Retubing
Thermal Power Tube-End Cleaning, Installation, Expanding, Facing & Welding, WB2025-LB-03Q (Hangzhou Guoneng) 6 units May 2025 Stainless steel Retubing

More projects

FAQ

How long does it take to retube a whole condenser?

There's no standard figure. It mainly comes down to the number of tubes, the tube material, whether the tube ends are welded, site conditions and the outage window.

Before mobilizing, we build a schedule around these factors and align it with your outage plan; the contract sets the final dates. One reference point: at Sanbaimen Power Plant, Raoping, in 2009, expanding, trimming and welding nearly 40,000 titanium tubes on a 1,000 MW unit took 15 days.

Can you work with titanium, stainless steel and copper alloy tubes?

Yes – all three appear in our project references. Titanium is typical at nuclear and coastal plants, stainless steel at inland thermal plants, and copper alloy on older units and some petrochemical and HVAC equipment.

Each material needs its own expansion and welding parameters, so we set the procedure from the tube specification and design requirements before work starts.

Troubleshooting guides

Guides on the Lanbo products website, with causes, step-by-step fixes and the tools for the job.

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