Posted 5 years ago
hotairfan
(388 items)
I have this steam power unit for several years now. I was willed it from my best friends estate. Although it is quite heavy (approx. 150 lbs.) I have taken it to display at the Cabin Fever Expo shows in York, PA and Lebanon, PA. At these shows, they must be run on air supplied by the show facilities.
I always wanted to run it on coal fired steam, and even though it has all of the amenities, including new boiler tubes that my friend had installed by a certified boiler inspector, I just never got around to doing it until now. I am getting older now, and I decided that if I am going to run this steam plant on steam, I better do it now, when I still can. To do this, You have to be very safety conscious because steam really is a tempest in a teapot, and a boiler explosion of this size boiler, would be very disastrous to the operator and any body within a 100 ft. area. I have met all of this criteria except for doing a hydrostatic pressure test. I purchased a hydrostatic pressure test pump. To do this, you fill the boiler to the very top with water, (because water cannot compress, and a leak would result in a stream of leaking water and not an explosion). You than pump the pressure up to the pressure point that you desire. If the pressure holds for 10 or more minutes, the boiler is safe.
after acquiring a pressure test pump this spring, I intend to water pressure test the boiler to 300 psi. This should be high enough, because I intend to run the boiler no higher than 100 psi. I can than feel safe to operate the boiler by steam.
The photos show that it has all of the double safety features that a steam boiler (full size or model size) should have, that is : two forms of supplying water to the boiler, (I have both a hand pump and a steam powered pump), also two ways to assure the level of the water in the boiler, (I have a water sight gauge and a three level water valve set-up), I also have two pressure relief valves, one set to 90 psi. and the other set at 100 psi. I think that I have covered all of the bases and I am ready to begin on this endeavor.
Sorry about the sideways photo, I can't seem to get it to stand up right. One of the photos show the steam powered water pump, and you can see the water supply tank behind it. You can see the a vertical Sipp engine, powered by a approx. 30" tall Sipp boiler. I have all brass plumbing and a small brass lubricator (high on the boiler, near the steam whistle).
Wish me luck on this project.
That’s all fine and dandy, but what caught my eye is that little greenhouse in the background! I’m really simple, you see.
All those elbows and valves and hazards have to be left to you guys!!
Just kidding...I’m really impressed you have done this....and likely built that greenhouse too!
Cleaver observation Watchsearcher, but to be truthful, I didn't make the little glass house. How it occurs that I have it is ...... My wife and I went to a farm sale with a good friend and his wife. We went in my GMC pick-up truck so we didn't have to take two autos. While I was in another area of the sale because of a particular item that I was interested in, my friend bought several of these window panes. He probably purchased 50 or more frames. We loaded all of them into the bed of my truck, and supriseing to me, we were able to stack all 50 or more window frames into the truck bed.
I'm guessing, out of appreciation for my help in loading the window frames and unloading them at his home, he made my wife this very cute glass house.
She loves it. Since then, he had made several more for other friends and family.
I cherish it because both my friend and his wife have passed on, and when I pass by it while mowing the lawn, I think of him and the gift that he made for us.
If EVER y'all's (hotairfan or anybody else) have somehow not already realized that stuff like this is FORZACTLY the kinda stuff I love the very mostest bestest (albeit that which is also more difficult for me to personally collect) I've somehow failed at something somewheres along the line...
<ROTFLMAO>
THANKS for showing it hotairfan -- I can't wait to see further pics/vids one of these days of the thing actually **steaming itself up**???!!! <applause>
hang in there anything Obscure, old farts like me eventually sell our treasures, or our wives sell it after we,,, ahem... move on
Nownow waitaminnit hotairfan -- don't go throwing that 'old fart' thing at me...I already totally call myself easily qualifying for that term, too. <smile><LOL> And to whoever gets tasked with disposing of 'my estate' when I really do go to pushing daisies...well, that won't be my problem by then at all now, will it...I just hope whoever it is has been paying attention to the various bits of crap and all I show here (+ all the stuff I haven't yet...lots more likely actually more 'valuable' than what I have shown, if only somebody realizes such) thus to help minimize the actual amount of 'debt' I might also leave behind...it should be one HELLA-GOOD estate sale anyways whenever it happens...??? ;-) ;-) ;-)
Ok, Ok anything, you win.......you can be a bigger fart than me, but you do know, bb2 tops both of us in that catagory..... oops,... do you think he's listening to this conversation?
/me <bows> with my hat off in proper recognition/honor of bb2's undisputed reign in that regard... and Rob, I'll bet he'll chime up sooner or later when he notices this little exchange...?? <ROTFL> :-) :-) :-)
(though, then again, I'd *also* nearly bet bb2 might be otherwise distracted with a whole *different* kind of "CORONA"...?? (the one where I think the next word on the label is "Cerveza"...?? ;-) :-) :-)
Looks AWESOME :) Good Luck !! Gods Speed !!
Update on my project,
I just hydro-tested the boiler and it held for 15 min at 200 psi. It probably would have held longer, but, I think that if it had a problem, it would have shown in the 15 min.
I can now safely steam pressurize the boiler to 90 psi ( where the first pressure relief valve is set)
Now I need to get some coal.