The Steamboating Forum

Jon,
I always take a look at the hotwell level and decide as to whether or not I need to add water to it or not. Where the actual level is depends on how successful I was at getting the boiler completely full last time I used the boat. Sometimes I've run out of fire and steam before getting the boiler completely full with the injector, so I leave it as is, in which case the hotwell will be correspondingly higher than normal.

A whistle drain valve is a valve fitted to a pipe that drains live steam from the whistle line. best option is to take a line off just below the whistle valve and run it back to the hotwell, via a needle valve. When left open, it keeps a small flow of steam through the line, keeping the line hot. Only need s to be a small line, but just remember it will be under full pressure when the whistle line itself is on. That system, combined with one of Paul Eaton's anti whistle rain devices in the whistle pipe thread would I believe result in no water coming down on the passengers, and a nice noise from the whistle all the time. Obviously the flow from the drain line would need to go right down into the bottom of the hot well so any steam condensed in the hotwell, rather than just gassing off at the top.

Daniel

Perhaps this whistle valve return line could do double duty as the supply line for a Windermere Kettle. Heat your hot toddy and keep both whistles going!! It hot and yours wet.

Hi Daniel,

What do you use for the drain line ? Small gauge copper ? If I have a steam line coming off the boiler for the whistle with the valve right at the base of the whistle (ie at the end of the line), wont any condensation just naturally flow back into the boiler, or is it essentially riding on top of the steam ?

jon

Jon,
Small gauge copper does fine. I've never operated one with the valve at the end of the pipe directly below the whistle, but the principle would probably be the same. The steam at the top of the pipe seems to condense just enough to be a problem. Whether it stays there condensed or condenses when you pull the whistle I don't know. I do know though if you get the whistle line hot before pulling the cord, it greatly reduces the problem.
Daniel

I think Jon's question is, "Why would the condensation flow down the small pipe when it doesn't seem to flow back to the boiler via the whistle supply pipe?"

The answer being a two fold one. One, there is a constant, if small, flow to atmospheric pressure through the small line whereas unless you are blowing the whistle, there is little flow upwards through the whistle supply line, Yes, most of the condensation at the upper end of the whistle pipe does run back down. But the upper end is the coolest and that is where the wonderful 'hot shower and croaking effect' comes from when we first pull the rope.

Second, the constant small flow through the small line to the hot well keeps the whistle line and the whistle hot enough to cut way down on the amount of condensation up there. A small leak at the whistle valve would accomplish pretty much the same thing. We do that when we pull gently on the whistle valve to warm it up before a toot. But that is a pain and wastes water. With the small line. fed through a valve, to the hot well, we save the water.

Also, that steam separator idea is a good one. I'm waiting on a performance report!