Lifu boilers

[johnp]

Can someone tell me where to find lifu boiler drawings?

[barts]

Something like this boiler? http://steamboat.org.uk/register/html/S ... Vsl=Oberon

I've not see construction drawings, but the specs are these:

Built 1900s by Liquid Fuel Engineering Co..
Fuel: oil, diesel or paraffin, Pressure: 250 psi.
Top drum 10" dia x 30" long, cast bronze, 126 x .5/8" od copper tubes, screwed connections to drums, ss casing. Rated 15 HP. LIFU type burner. Fitted with superheater.

And I thought I was daring with 180 psi in a copper tubed boiler .

And here's a picture of a bigger one:
http://books.google.com/books?id=sfwyA ... 22&f=false

- Bart

[fredrosse]

That boiler really drives Oberon along!! Youtube has some video of this launch, easily could tow water skiers.

Interesting to note that the ASME Boiler Code allows Copper (and Copper Alloy) boiler components up to a maximum of 406F, and that saturation pressure just happens to match 250 PSIG steam.

Looks like getting to the union connections on that boiler would be quite a challenge, special wrenches maybe?

[87gn@tahoe]

Something like an O2 sensor socket I imagine.

Supposedly those fittings are the grandfather of our hydraulic fittings today...

[barts]

Pretty sure you could do that w/ Swedge-Loks. I've used regular flare fittings in a boiler steam line repair (an old porcupine)
w/o problems for a couple of years until I built Otter's new boiler.

Pretty nice boiler configuration; good tube density and proper coverage. Not too difficult to build either - bends are large radius;
non-destructive repairs are possible even to inner tubes thanks to screwed fittings.

- Bart

[fredrosse]

Bart, that Cassier's Magazine you posted a link to has an interesting article titled "Marine Feed Water Filtering". Seems like most of the Magazine is full of stuff very much that may be of interest to we steamboaters.