services and products

Brazed plate heat exchangers

A brazed plate heat exchanger is compact, sealed and has no gaskets: the plates are brazed together into a single unit. That makes it suitable for fixed installations where the capacity no longer changes and space is limited. HEXCHANGE supplies the brazed plate heat exchangers of UNEX from its own stock in Oosterhout, in a copper-brazed or a copper-free version.

Heat exchanger sizing Request your quote here

Brazed heat exchangers at the UNEX factory

Brazed plate heat exchangers from stock

Because no gaskets and no frame are involved, a brazed exchanger is smaller and lighter than a demountable one at the same capacity. There is also nothing to adjust: the number of plates is fixed at manufacture. That means the upfront calculation is either right or it is not, which is why we prefer to double-check this type with you before you order.

We keep the common models in stock in Oosterhout. Every enquiry is answered within one working day with a quotation stating the type, availability and price.

Stainless steel heat exchanger: copper-brazed or copper-free

In a brazed plate heat exchanger the material appears in two layers: the plates and the brazing. The plates are made of stainless steel, AISI 316 — which is why this type is often simply called a stainless steel heat exchanger in practice. The brazing joins those plates together, and that is where you have a choice.

Copper-brazed — the standard version, suitable for water, glycol mixtures and most closed systems
Copper-free brazed — for applications where copper is undesirable or not permitted, for example because the medium attacks copper or because the system must not absorb copper ions

Choosing the copper-brazed or copper-free version

If you are torn between a copper-brazed heat exchanger and a copper-free version, pass on the medium and the system conditions. We will tell you which of the two is right in your situation — ordering a copper-free version just to be safe is rarely necessary and always more expensive.

Titanium plates are not available in a brazed version. If you have chloride-containing water or seawater, you will end up with a gasketed plate heat exchanger with titanium plates.

UNEX: the brand we supply

UNEX is the Austrian manufacturer of plate and brazed plate heat exchangers, based in Eisenstadt. HEXCHANGE is the official representative of UNEX in the Netherlands and a premium partner as well. The full range runs through a single point of contact with us: we select the type, keep the common models in our own stock in Oosterhout and take care of delivery.

We have worked with this range since 2013. That saves you research: instead of ploughing through a type list, you pass on the process conditions and get back the model that matches — with the reasoning behind it.

Small heat exchangers for compact installations

For applications with limited capacity and little space, a small heat exchanger is often the practical choice: a compact brazed unit that you fit into the pipework, without a frame and without surrounding clearance to open it. Here too the number of plates is fixed, so the capacity has to be right up front — choosing a size larger just to be safe costs more than it delivers here, because an oversized exchanger controls poorly at part load.

Ordering insulation with it

With a brazed plate heat exchanger you can order the matching insulation straight away. For heating applications there are insulation boxes that limit heat loss to the surroundings; for cooling applications there is cold insulation that prevents condensation on the outside. Both are easy to fit around the exchanger. State in your enquiry whether it concerns heating or cooling and we will include the right version.

Need double wall for domestic hot water?

If it concerns domestic hot water or another drinking water application, you need a double wall version that keeps the drinking water separated from the other medium. We supply those too, also brazed; everything about them is on the double wall heat exchanger page.

Replacing an existing brazed heat exchanger

Looking for a replacement for a brazed exchanger from another brand? Pass on the brand and type number or use the search tool on our replacement page. If you do not know the required capacity, you can first calculate it yourself or leave the calculation to us.

heat exchanger calculation