the manchester steam users association
TRANSCRIPT
T HE MA NCHE S T ER
STEAM USERS’
ASSOCIATION.
EST A B L ISHED 1 854.
MEMORANDUM BY CHIEF ENGINEER,
ANNUAL MEETINGO O O
O
O O
G ENE R A L B O D Y O F T HE MEMB E R S ,
TUESDAY,APRIL 5m ,
1898.
MANC HESTER
T HE MA NC HE S T ER
STEAM USERS’
ASSOCIATION.
ESTA B L ISHED 1 854.
MEMORANDUM BY CHIEF ENGINEER,
PRESENTED A T T HE
ANNUAL MEETINGO F T HE
G ENE R A L B O D Y O F T HE MEMB E R S,
HELD O N
TUESDAY,APRIL S T E ,
1898.
H
MA NCHESTERG U A RDIAN PRINT ING WO R% S
,BLAC % F R IARS STREET .
1 898.
MANCHESTER STEAM USERS’
ASSOCIATION.
ACCUMULATED FUND S ,
PRES IDENTAD AM D U G D A L E, Esq .
, B l ackburn .
V ICE-PRES I DENT
C HAR LES HEAT ON,Esq .
, Bol ton .
E% ECU TIVE C OMMIT TEER ALPH PEA C OC % , Esq .
, C .E . , G orton . HER BER T H . SMIT H -C A R ING T O N,Esq .
,
HENR Y HA R R I S O N,Esq .
,B l ackburn . O penshaw ,
Manchester .
THOMA S HA R O LD L EE,Esq .
,Manchester .
TREA S U RER SWILL IAMS D EAC ON AND MANCHESTER A ND SALF O R D BAN% , L IMIT ED .
CHIEF ENG INEERCHA R LES E . STR OMEY ER
,
SEC RETARYR OBER T . T ONGE.
MANCHESTER STEAM USERS’
ASSOCIATION.
9 , MO U NT STREET , AL B ERT S% U A R E,
MA NCHES TER ,
T uesday, 29 th March ,1 898.
T O T HE E% EC U T IV E C OMMIT T EE,
GENTL EMEN,
In preparation for the approaching Annual Meeting , allow
me to lay before you a few remarks on the valuable services which my
predecessor has rendered this Association , and a general review of our
attainments,together w ith a few engineering matters .
A few detai ls of Mr . Lavington E . F letcher ’ s early l ife wi l l al so not be
out of place , as they explain in some measure how he acquired the varied
experiences which guided him in hi s long and successful career as Chief
Engineer of th is Association . He was born in 1822, and at the age of 1 7
entered the engineering profes sion,to which he remained wedded for the
remainder of hi s l ife—for 58 years . Shortly after the complet ion of hi sapprenticeship he had charge of the erection of the first engine , boiler , and
biscuit machinery at Messrs . Huntley Palmer ’ s works . In 1 842,when
he was only 20 years old , he designed and made a steam motor car .
For several years he was then engaged on rai lway engineering , and he
designed the largest and last wood and iron trussed viaduct . He then
t ook up the subj ects of Naval Archite cture and Marine Engineering
designing several successful steamers , and after a short experience
among hydraulic and electri c machinery,he was
,at the age of 39 ,
appointed Chief Inspector to this Association . He at once identified
himsel f with it s aims and obj ects,and during the many years of h is
subsequent act ivity , he devoted himself w i th untiring zeal to the perfect ion
of boilers , parti cularly Lancashire boilers , and to the combat ing of
erroneous views which , based on ancient laboratory experimen t s , hav e
persi sted to this day . For these services the whole engineering profess ion
owe him their deepest thanks,and
,in addit ion
,thi s Association owe s h im
a debt of grat itude for having placed u s at the head of al l s imilar
Associat ions . This he has done by perfecting a system of boiler inspection
4 MANCHESTER STEAM USERS’
ASSOCIATION .
which cannot be surpassed for rel iabil ity , and he , and his able ass istant ,Mr . Hige nbot tam,
on whom devolved the task of carrying out the system ,
could have boasted that during the 36 years of hi s leadership only one of
our boilers has exploded from causes other than overheating . This was .
due to an external accident over which neither the Associat ion nor th e
boiler attendant had any control . This beneficial work was carried on
w ith such retiring modesty , that even now i t w i l l doubtle s s come as a ,
surprise to many members that our average expenses for boiler repairs,in
al l cases due to oversights only of the attendants , amount to le ss than
7d . per annum per guaranteed . Having for many years been
connected w ith Lloyds ’ Register , I , l ike the rest of the world , look on their
clas s 1 00 AI as an absolute guarantee of perfect strength and effic iency .
I am,therefore
,most agreeably surprised to find that our inspections and
report s are,i f poss ible , even more impartial , thorough , and rel iable than
theirs . We are not content wi th an examination while bui lding , and once
every fourth year afterwards , but we inspect each boi ler every year . It i s
one of their rules that every twelfth year , when a vesse l passes through;
her No . 3 survey , two instead of one of Lloyds’ surveyors have to inspect.
her . With us the system has been adopted of , as far as possible , not.
sending the same inspector to a boiler year after year ; then the reports
of these different inspectors are careful ly compared,and any changes of
form or increases of corrosion are careful ly noted and reported , so that .
pract ical ly we do annually , what Lloyds’ Register do only every twelfth%
year . This careful system was bui l t up under the most discouragingcircumstances . In our early days we were almost ext ingui shed by a .
competit ion of Insurance Companies . Explosions were frequent ; and as
every n ew catastrophe with a prompt payment for damages was but an
advertisement for more business , and therefore much talked about , many
of our members became unnerved ; and although we assured them that .
their boi lers would not explode,they had not sufficient faith in us
,and
preferred to remain les s ful ly informed about the actual condition of their
boi lers , but to insure them . They forgot that i t was not only their
property and their servants who were thus exposed to destruction or death ,
but they themselves might be the victims . On looking through the records
of explos ions it is curious to find how severely factory owners have been
punished . Thus during the last five years,out of 215 deaths or injuries ,
1 3 were suffered by factory owners , managers , oi% th eir sons , the actualrate being one per 1 5 workmen .
It was under such discouraging condition s that Mr . Fletcher j oined
thi s Association , and , after many fruitless attempts , Mr . Hugh Mason ,our
then Pres ident , was at last successful in getting a Bil l passed through
Parl iament , according to which a Board of Trade Inquiry has to be held
into each boiler explosion . Since then , but more particularly since 1 895,
MEMORANDUM BY CHIEF ENGINEER . 5
when 12 insured boilers exploded simultaneously at Redcar , both steam
users and boiler insurers have grown more careful , and the number of
s erious explosions has been material ly reduced . But Mr . Fletcher was
not content w ith thi s resul t ; he wi shed to see al l boilers as safe as those
of our members,and he overtaxed his s trength when , in spite of his las t
i l lness,b e exerted himsel f to get another Bil l passed through Parl iament ,
according to which boiler inspection was to be made compulsory . This
system is in force in France , Belgium , and Germany , and from inquirie s
which I have made it seems to work wel l and w ith but l itt le friction .
His single -handed exert ions in this direction ,which were ev idently
d ictated by purely humanitarian motives , brought him into confl ic t wi th
the various Boiler Insurance Companies whose intere sts his proceedings
seemed to threaten . Cordial relations have , however , again been estab
l ish ed .
Although Mr . Fletcher ’ s l ife obj ect seems to have been cen tred on the
fulfi lment of the above wi shes , he was ever conscious of his duty towards
thi s Assoc iat ion,and when
,soon after the formation of the various Boi ler
Insurance Companies , competition grew so keen as to threaten our very
existence , he undertook the task of arranging a system of boiler guarantees ,according to which we bind ourselve s not only to inspect boilers and report
on their condit ion ,but also to compensate steam users against the couse
quence s of explosion as completely and wi th fewer reservations than if
the boilers were insured . In fact , we take both the moral and pecuniary
responsibil ity on our shoulders , and should it ever happen that one of our
boilers were to explode , the Board of Trade Commissioners would hold us
re sponsibl e and would fine us ; whereas , should an insured boiler explode ,Insurance Companies would not be fined if they had not thoroughly
examined it . If , however , they had examined the boiler , but had not
reported its dangerous condition to the owner,then they would be fined .
Such cases are exceedingly rare . As a result of our modified pol icy , fi e ,
guaranteeing the integrity and rel iabil ity of our inspect ion,the Associat ion
has prospered ever since it s membership has increased,and now includes
many of the largest steam users of the United % ingdom,as wel l as many
Corporations and the numerous War Office establ ishments . In fact , most
of our members are steam users who attach more importance to an
assurance that their boilers are safe , than to a promised compensation
in case their boilers should explode .
Shortly after Mr. Fletcher ’ s appointment,our example was for the first
t ime successful ly fol lowed by the formation of other Boiler Inspect ionAssociations which have survived to this day
,the wel l -known Mulhause
Association being the first . The Continent now possess about 40 of these
Assoc iations . Their difficultie s , unl ike ours , were connected w ith endeavours to obtain Government recognition of their inspectors and inspections ,
6 MANCHESTER STEAM USERS ’ ASSOCIATION .
wh ere bv their members could be rel ieved of the inconvenience of Govern
ment supervis ion . They have been successful ; but i t appears to be an
unwritten instruction,that the offi cial sanction would be at once withdrawn
i f any of these Associations were to enter upon commercial transact ions
such as insurance . In those countrie s boilers are insured wi th the Fire
Insurance Companies .
In a few months’ t ime a turning point wi l l be reached in our industrial
history, which must have caused many anxious thoughts to manufacturers ,
and wh i ch has al so engaged our serious attent ion . I am referring to the
n ew VV orkmen’
s Compensation Act , which comes into force on the
l s t % uly , this year . According to this Act , Employers wi l l have to pay
compensation in case any of their employ%s are killed or inj ured . In large
works this ri sk can easily be borne by the employer . Smaller works wi l l
doubtle ss insure these risks,or combine and form mutual insurance clubs .
In either case the question wi l l always have to be asked % I s your boiler
safe % ” If i t has been guaranteed by thi s Association , I can unhesitat ingly
say that i t i s safe , or rather , that out of about boiler inspections
not one has ever shown itself to be unrel iable .
For the information of those of our members who may wi sh to form
themselves into mutual insurance clubs against the ri sks of the various
Employers ’ Liability Acts , and also for the information of such Insurance
Companies as take these risks,and who might wish to rely on our in spe c
t ion as regards the safety of boilers, we have careful ly examined the recent
Board of Trade reports on boi ler explos ions wi th a V iew to determining the
average risk attach ing to the presence of a boiler .
A rough estimate fixes the number of boilers in the United % ingdom at.
about These can be divided as fol lows
Boilers guaranteed by the about
Boilers insured about
Boilers not officially inspected about
Total
During the five years under considerat ion,there were 1 24 proper boi ler
explosions ; these do not include burst pipes , kiers , sti l l s , &c . There were
no explosions among the guaranteed boilers,and there were 84 explos ion s
among the uninspected boilers . The remainder,40 in number , including
insured boilers , need not be discussed .
An estimate of the cost of . each of these 1 24 boi ler explos ions has been
made on the following basi s Renewal of boiler if exploded,or renewal of
% ue tubes if collapsed rebuilding of boiler shed or damaged factory ,
MEMORANDUM BY CHIEF ENGINEER . 7
compensation of £150 , £300 ,and £500 respectively in case of death of
labourer,ski ll ed workman ,
or outs ider , and 20s . compensation for 1 3
weeks for al l inj urie s .
EST IMAT ED AVERAGE C OST O F A B OILER E% PLOS ION DU RINGREC ENT F IVE Y EARS .
C LASS A . C LASS B . AV ERAG E .
Damage to boiler
Damage to property
Estimated payments for
Estimated payments for injuries
Board of Trade fines
Total average cost of one
Class A includes such boilers as would have been guaranteed by us i f
found safe . Class B includes egg-ended and other antiquated boilers which
would not be guaranteed by us under any circumstances .
With the help of this table , and remembering that there were on an
average 1 7 real explos ions among the uninspected boilers,i t wi l l
be found that the average cost of explosions amounts to on ly about 15 penceper boiler . About double this sum or even more would have to be added
for repairs of minor boiler troubles which are not reported to the Board of
Trade .
It would be for mutual insurance clubs against the Employers ’ Liabil ityActs and for I n sura nce Companies to decide whether these risks are
sufficiently appreciable to demand an extra premium,or whether it i s not
better to insi st that their members ’ boilers should be thoroughly inspected
and guaranteed . In the latter case there would be practical ly no risk . As
far as we have been able to ascertain,only two men have ever been
inj ured by troubles connected wi th our boilers . The injurie s were sl ight ,and the total compensation which might have been due to them under the
n ew Act , would not have amounted to more than £25.The above
estimates have been communicated to the principal general Insurance
Companies and when effect ing their insurances against the n ew
Workmens Compensation Act , our members wi l l doubtle s s be able to
obtain somewhat more favourable terms than would otherwise have been
the case .
8 MANCHESTER STEAM USERS’
ASSOCIATION .
Many explosions are natural ly due to carele ssness on the part of the
attendants,and although much can be done to avert danger by having
boilers properly equipped with the necessary safety appliances , and al so
by letting the boilers have a large margin of safety , yet the explos ion risk s
c annot be entirely removed , and this Associat ion , at an early dat e of it s
existence,published the first Instruct ions to Boiler Attendants . A few
years later Boiler Insurance Companies first came into existence and
fol lowed our example .
Some years ago,having made exhaustive experiments on the effect of
introducing cold water into red -hot boilers , and finding that the ancient
bel ief in the danger of thi s practice was unfounded , Mr . Fletcher care
ful ly revised the old Instruct ions so as to embody al l the most recent
experiences and experiments . It has , however , been thought that boiler
attendants would general ly prefer shorter and more precise instruction s ,particularly in cases of emergency . New Instruct ions have therefore been
printed and i ssued to the members of the Associat ion . They are as
follows
ADV ICE TO BOILER ATTENDANTS .
GENERAL WOR % ING .
T reat your boi lers w i th care and at tent ion . Accidents are thereby prevented ,expenses reduced , and the labour of firing lessened .
WATER LEV EL .
—Before l ighting fires,see that there is sufficient water in the boi ler .
T est the water gauges frequent ly ,and keep the water level steady .
B LOW-O F F C ow s—Before l ighting fires be sure that the blow -off cocks are closed ,and not leaking . Occasional ly feel if the blow -off waste pipes are hot . B low off frombottom before starting the engine . Sediment has then sett led in the e lbow pipe .
B low O ff the scum before stopping the engines,but only when the water level is at the
c orrect height . A t such times most of the scum has col lected in the troughs .L IGHT ING F i R Es .
— Sudden changes of temperature may produce fractures or startleakages . T herefore never raise steam hurriedly . T h e top and bottom of a boi ler
should grow warm together . I f convenient,fi l l the boi ler w i th warm water through
the economiser . If the boi ler water i s cold,al low fully six hours for raising steam .
I f pressed for t ime , fi l l the boi ler to the top of the water gauge , fire slow l y , and keepthe safety valve open unt i l steam blows off freely . A fter c losing the safety valve
,blow
out the bot tom cold water ti l l th e working level is reached . T h e pressure may now berai sed more quickly .
SMO % E PREV ENT I ON .—Smoke and imperfect combustion are caused by an insuffi cient
air supply or by premature cooling of the % ames . T herefore after coal ing , when thefires are black , admit air ei ther at the door or through the spli t bridge . It is less
wasteful to admit too much air than too l i t t le . Wi th smoky boilers , or when hardpressed , keep the fire s thin and even . F ire steadily . Don’t coal al l furnaces at once .
C oal each furnace on one side at a t ime .
EMPTY ING B O I L ER s .—Do not empty the boiler whi le steam is up .
MEMORANDUM BY CHIEF ENGINEER . 9
OVERHAU LING , C LEANING ,AND I xe cri ox .
—C l eali the boiler month ly or oftener ,remove the scale while soft i f possible while empty ing the boiler . Sweep the soot offthe boi ler plates and c lean the % ues every three months , as wel l as on the occasion ofthe annual inspection . Al l leakages should be s t e pped , any cause of dampness in the
setting should be removed,corrosion should be arrested . T h e fusible plugs should be
cleaned on the fire side and water side once a month , and the fusible metal should be
renewed once a year at the time of the annual in spect ion . A l l cock s should be keptoiled
,and unless asbestos packed , they should be overhauled once every month . T hese
cooks , the feed valves , s team stop valves and al l safety valves should be overhau led
annually on the occasion of the Inspector ’s visi t .
\VA R NING S .
MANHO L Es - B efore opening the manholes ease the safety valve so as to be quite sure
that there i s no pressure in the boiler . B efore entering a boiler secure the steam valves
and blow -O ff cocks .
SAF ETY V ALV ES A ND Low WATER A L A R i I s .—T h e most disastrous explosions have
%happened w i th boilers whose safety valves had been %ammed down or overloaded .
Never overload or tamper w i th safety valves or w i th low water alarms . Ease or test
them regularly every day . Be sure that they are in working order . I f they w il l notwork properly , reduce the steam pressure and then report to the manager . In
doubtfu l cases he should wri te to the Manchester S team U sers ’ A ssociat ion .
STEAM STO P V ALV ES AND STEAM Pi n s —Numerous fatal accident s have happenedto boiler attendants whi le opening valves or drain cocks of steam pipes which hadaccidental ly become fi l led w i th water . T his water should be drained off , but onlywhen the pipe i s shut off from the boiler . T h e cracking noises which are somet imesheard in steam pipes , general ly when opening a steam stop valve or a drain cock , are a
s ign that water i s being shot about by the l ive steam . Retire at once , for the nextblow may be an explosion . S team pipes which slope downwards from the boil er stopvalve to the engine appear to be qui te safe . Horizontal pipes , part icul arly i f their ends
are turned up , are dangerous . T hey should be fi t ted w i th steam traps or at least w i thdrain cocks , and should always be kept dry .
C O LLAPSED F uRNA C Es . If , during the ordinary working of a Lancashire orC ornish boiler , the water was seen in the glass less than hal f an hour ago , but hasdisappeared , due to the feed having stopped , then probably no harm has yet been done .
If the water was not seen for a long time,or if a mistake was made when last looking
a t the gauge glass , or if the water has disappeared suddenly and unaccountably , thenthere i s a possibi l ity that the furnace tops have come down
,or are coming down
,due
t o overheating . In ei ther case , cool the plates from both sides as quickly as possible .
Open the furnace doors to admit cold air , but don ’t d isturb the fires , ease th e safety
valves so as to cause priming . T h e ri sing froth i s not so dangerous as cold feed water ,a nd w i l l help to cool and sti ffen the over-heated plates . A fterwards increase the feedt i l l the water shows in the gauge glass .
C O LLAPSED F U RNAC ES . % I f there i s much scale , oil , or refuse in the boi ler , the
furnace sides and not the tops usually bulge in , general ly very slow l y . In th is case
cool the plates from the fire side open the doors ; i f possible , cover the fires w i th dampa shes .
T hese accident s should be reported to th e Manchester S team U sers ’ A ssociat ion ato nce .
1 0 MANCHESTER STEAM USERS ’ ASSOCIATION.
When exposed to these dangers the boi ler attendant may prefer to ret ire . He
should certain ly not expose himself unnecessaril y in front of the furnaces , and should
warn others of the danger .
GENERAL WARNINGS .
Don ’t overload the safety valves or tamper w i th them .
Don ’t let the water-level s ink out of sight .Don ’t a l low the gauge cocks to set fast .
Don ’t open the steam stop valves hurried ly .
Don ’t empty the boi ler whil e steam is up .
Don ’t use unknown scale solvent s or composit ions .
C HARLES E . STROMEY ER , M .I .C .E
Manches t er S t eam U sers’
A ssocia tion , Chief Engin eer.9 , Moun t S tre e t ,
A l bert S qua re , Manches t er.
It wi l l be noticed that the suggestions as to the general working of a .
boi ler have been very much curtailed . This has been done to save space ,and on the assumption that a fireman has had some training in his cal l ing
and merely requires hint s to help him over difficulties . The only important
addition which has been made to this part of the % Advices , &c .
” i s that
re lat ing to the scal ing of boi lers . In 1892, M . Schmidt , Engineer of the
Associat ion of Steam Users of the Somme , Aisne , and Oise , read a paper
before the sixteenth Congress of Chief Engineers on a n ew method of
cleaning boilers which had been re -discovered and adopted by one of hi s
steam users,and which is as fol lows The boi ler i s cooled down without
running out it s water . After a few days , when the temperature has fal len
sufficiently to al low a man to enter , the top manhole door is removed , the
water i s lowered to about 1 ft . below the furnace crown , and the boiler
cleaners enter the boiler armed wi th brushes , scrapers , and , i f necessary ,with a high pressure water hose . They find the scale to be soft , almost
muddy , and can remove it wi th the greatest c ase . When they have
cleaned the upper part of the boiler,the water i s lowered 1 ft . at a time .
as the cleaning progresses . By this means al l n ew scale can be removed
in a few hours . Should the work of cleaning the boiler not be commenced
until one hour after the water has been run out,then the scale wi l l already
have become hard , and can only be detached from the plat e s by the tedious
process of chipping . If the water i s blown out under pressure the scale ,being l eft in a dry and hot condi tion ,
i s doubly hard and adhesive . Old
scale , which has been in the boiler for years , does not soften again , but
after a t ime it al so yields to this treatment . On the other hand,boi lers
which do not readily scale , can be partial ly protected against corrosion by
emptying them while they are sti l l warm , when the undisturbed thin scale
wi l l harden on the warm surfaces . Inquirie s made amongst our inspectors
revealed that this method of cleaning had,years ago
,been adopted by
MEMORANDUM BY CHIEF ENGINEER . 1 1
some s team users,and also that i t was perfectly true that boiler scale i s
soft as long as i t has not been exposed to the air , and in al l recent case s
where members were troubled with scale , and where the condi t ions were
otherw ise favourable , they have been adv i sed to adopt th is plan . Although
boilers can thus be freed from scale more easi ly and in a much shorter
t ime than if th e v are allowed to dry , i t wi l l be found that the men pre fer
the more unsati sfactory and costly process now in use ; a suit of o il sk in s
to pro tec t them from the we t might be found an inducement to convert
them to work this method sat isfactorily .
Economisers should be cleaned on the same plan , al l the top caps being
removed and the pipes kept ful l of water while the scale i s being detached
and converted into mud by l igh t iron scrapers . One - inch gas pipes,to
which a serrated disc or pipe coupl ings have been screwed , w i l l do
excel lent serv ice . When al l the pipe s have been cleaned , the accumulated
mud is removed from be l ow .
In recent years water- tube boilers have for certain purposes been
frequently employed,but they give much trouble i f the water i s
sedimentary . In such cases i t i s suggested that the scale should be
similarly removed,i f possible under water , the top tubes being cleaned
first,and no water being let out except through the top hole s of the tube
to be cleaned .
The above instruct ions wi l l , i t i s hoped , be fol lowed wherever possible ,not only for the purpose of increasing the effi ciency of boilers , but more
part icularly for the purpose of reducing their wear and tear . It must be
obvious that scale,which i s a hundred - fold worse heat conductor than
iron,must
,i f i t coats the heat ing surfaces , cause them to be overheated .
Instead of acquiring the temperature of the boiling water, which i s fairly
constant , and w i th which the plates should be in immediate contact , their
temperature % uctuates up and down in harmony w i th that of the % ue gases .
No wonder , then , that riveted seams are strained until they open and leak .
Frequently even the rivet hole s crack , and no wonder al so that corners and
% anges pant , crack , groove , and finally wear through . This troubl e can
general ly be prevented by keeping the scale thin . The more serious
dangers %col lapsed furnaces% of al lowing scal e to accumulate excessively
are too well known to be referred to here , but in avoiding them steam
users should be careful about going to the other extreme and banishing
scale entirely . They would then find that unless the necessary chemical s
are added , some waters wi l l seriously corrode the ir boiler plates .
The introduct ion of condensing engine s has led to much tro uble from
grease in the boilers ; furnaces , particularly in heavily fired boi lers , having
frequently col lapsed without any apparent cause,for the fi lm of o il which
doe s the misch ief i s so thin that i t i s not easily detected,and it general ly
1 2 MANCHESTER STEAM USERS ’ ASSOCIATION .
gets charred and disappears as soon as the furnaces have grown hot . The
importance of attending to thi s matter w il l be apparent when it i s
remembered that most hydrocarbon lubricants are exceptionally bad
conductors of heat,a thin fi lm of only T %U in . in thickness retarding the
heat as much as or even more than a layer of scaleT1,-
yin . thick
,or as a steel
plate l 0in . thick . If mineral oil s have been let into a boi ler they cannot
be removed l ike vegetable oil s by introducing causti c soda,and the only
real ly e ffective way of removing them is to al low a thin scale of mineral
matter to accumulate and to remove it together w i th the adhering O i l s .
By far the better plan i s,however
,to keep these oi l s out of the boi lers .
This i s done wi th reasonable effi ciency by passing the feed water through
a feed fi l ter . This fi l ter should be arranged so that it can be blown
through, whereby the accumulated grease i s di scharged , and the attendant
should be instructed to keep the fi l tering material as clean as possible .
Besides using this appliance i t w i l l be wel l worth the most serious
considerat ion of steam users to reduce the amount of lubricating oil used
in their cyl inders . On many of the largest steamers now running no oi l
i s introduced into the cyl inders,except a few drops at the commencement
and at the end of each voyage, which often extends over a few weeks . It
i s found that the moisture in the steam,amounting generally to more
than 25 per cent .,i s an excel lent lubricant both for the sl ide valves and
the pistons .
The sub -section % Warnings,in the above % Advice to Boiler Atten
dants , i s a n ew departure , and some O f the subj ect s found therein deserve
a few passing remarks .
An examination of the Board O f Trade reports shows that steam pipes
frequently explode , due to what i s commonly known as water-hammer
action . In such cases , i t appears that water accumulates in some low
lying part of a steam pipe ; i t s upper surface wh ere'
it i s in contact wi th
the steam is hot , but the undisturbed water under this fi lm i s cold . A
slight agitat ion of this water , caused perhaps by the opening of a stop
valve , or of a drain cock , may suddenly bring the cold portion of the
water into contact wi th the steam,a sudden condensation takes place
,
a vacuum is formed into which the column of water rushes wi th an
accelerated velocity , and being then brought to an abrupt standsti l l , strikes
a most intense blow against the valve or the steam pipe, which ,
no matter
how strongly they are made , in most cases are then shattered . As such
accidents occur very suddenly , and often wi thout apparent causes , i t was
thought wel l to address a few words of warning to the boiler attendants,
parti cularly as they are the chief sufferers . As pointed out in the
Advices , steam pipes can be so de signed that no water wi l l find al odgment in them , and al l danger of explosion i s removed .
MEMORANDUM BY CHIEF ENGINEER . 1 3
One very important distinction has for the first time been made in these
Advices as regards the causes of col lapsed furnaces and how such case sshould be treated . When there i s shortness of water the obvious remedy
i s to raise the water leve l , and this can be most quickly done by producingartificial priming
,cold water being added soon after . If cold water were
to be added at first,the immediate result would be a lowering of the water
level , and the uncovered plates , which may be nearly red hot , might give
way before the water leve l can be slowly raised to the necessary height by
the feed pumps . If the overheated plates are covered wi th water but
separated from it by layers of scale , grease , or re fuse , i t i s O bviously
useles s to add more water , and the best remedy must be to cool the
fires . Most other % Instructi ons to firemen make a distinction under
these circumstances as to whether the furnace plates are red hot or not ;but i t i s clearly impossible for anybody to look at a sooty furnace top
exposed e ither to the % ames or to the glare of a clear fire and to form an
O pinion as to whether the plate i s overheated or not . A fireman could
certainly not assure himsel f on th is point , and would therefore be in doubt
as to how to act . Besides i t i s dangerous for him to get in front of the
furnace .
During the past year only one evaporative boiler trial has been carried
out ; i t was made on a Lancash ire boiler fi tted wi th a patent smoke consumlug furnace
,but the report i s not yet suffic iently advanced to be
included in these remarks .I am pleased to be able to report that the work of this Association has
stil l further increased during the past year . The membership,the numbe r
of boilers inspected,and the engines indicated have considerably increased .
We are now frequently asked to give advice on al t erat iOn s to engines and
laying down new ones . It i s also very gratifying to find that members and
outsiders are more largely than ever avail ing themselves of thi s Association
for drawing up the specification for new boilers and for the ir inspecting
during construction . A S Mr . Fletcher devoted years of untiring attent ion
to the perfect ion of the Lancashire boiler , with which hi s name wi l l ever
be honourably associated , and as this Association can now boast that
of it s boilers were buil t to it s specification and under it s inspection and
have been most careful ly watched ever since , i t i s but natural that not
only our members , but Government Departments , Town Councils , and
even Consult ing Engineers should come to us for advice , and entrust us
w ith the design and inspect ion of their boilers .
I am,Gentlemen ,Yours faithful ly ,
C . E . STR OMEYER,
C hief Eng ine er .
D ISTINCTIV E FEATURES OF THE MANCHESTER
STEAM USERS ’ ASSOCIATION .
This Association was founded in the year 1854, by S ir Wil l iamFairbairn
, C .E. ; S ir Thomas B azl ey ,M.P . ; S ir % oseph Whitworth ,
Bart , C .E. ; Henry Houldsworth , Esq ., and other philan thrO pic
gentlemen , for the purpose of preventing steam boiler explosion s
by competent scientific inspection of the boil ers , and thus of savinghuman life .
This Association was the first institut ion to establ i sh periodical
boiler inspection on a practical basi s .
The Association i s not a % oint Stock Company . There are no
shareholders to whom dividends are paid out of the members ’
subscriptions , but the income is appropriated solely to promote th e
direct O bj ect s of the Association . The Committee of Management
i s elected annual ly at a general meet ing of t he body of subscribers .
After a boiler has been examined and found fi t for i t s working
pressure , the Associat ion give s a pecuniary guarantee of it s safety
to the extent of In the event of explos ion the guarantee
c overs both loss of l ife and property,as wel l as claims under the
Employers ’ Liability Act . The Association does not guarantee
boil ers on the principle of averages,but as the result of competent
s cientific inspection . It s obj ect i s Prevention,not Compensation ;
and it s fundamental principle i s—NO I nspec tion ,No G uaran tee .
The Association has never lost a l ife from the explosion of any
boiler guaranteed by it ..
MANCHESTER STEAMUSERS’
ASSOCIATION.
PAST PRES IDENT S .
HENRY HO U L D SWO R T H
S I R W'
IL L I AM F A IRB A IRN , B ART . , C .E., F HR S . 1858—74
HU G H MA S O N ,
RI CHA RD PEA CO C% , C .E., M.P.
MR . HENRY L EE, M.P . 1889—93
PAST V ICE-PRES ID ENT S .
MR . ED MU ND A SHWO RTH . MR . % O HN PENN , C .E., F .R .S .
S I R THOMA S B A ZL EY , B ART M.P. MR . % O HN RAMS B O TTO M, C .E.
MB . CHA RL ES F . B EYER . S I B. % O SEPHWHI TWO RTH , B AR T ., F .R .S .
D ISTINC TIV E FEA TU R ES O F THE MANCHESTERSTEAM U SER S ’
A SSO C IA TION.
This A ssociat ion was founded in the year 1854,by Sir William
F airbairn C .E. ; S ir Thomas B azl ey , M.P. ; Sir % oseph Whitworth,
B art , C .E. ; Henry Houldsworth , %
Esq .
,and other philanthropic
gent lemen,for the purpose of prevent ing st eam bo iler explosions by
competent scient ific inspect ion of the boilers,and t hus of saving human
l ife .
This A ssociat ion was the first ins t itut ion to establish periodicalboiler inspect ion on a practical basis .
The A ssocia t ion is not a % o int S tock C ompany . There are no
shareholders to whom dividends are paid out of the members ’ subscript ions
,but the income is appropriat ed solely to promot e the direct ob%ect s
of t he A ssociat ion . The C ommit t ee ofManagement is elected annuallyat a general mee t ing of the body of subscribers .
A ft er a boiler has been examined and found fit for it s workingpressure
,t he Associat ion gives a pecuniary guarant ee of it s safety t o the
ex tent of In the event of explosion t he guarant ee covers bot hloss of l ife and property
,as well as claims under the Employers ’
L iabilityA ct .
rThe A ssociat ion does not guarant ee boilers on t he principle of
averages,but as the result of compe t ent scient ific inspect ion . I t s ob%ect
is Prevention,not C ompensation ; and it s fundamental principle is
No I nsp ection , No Guaran tee . The A ssociat ion has n ever lost a l ife fromthe explosion of any boiler guaranteed by it .