Boilers at Forncett
Any steam engine needs a boiler to provide steam to run the it, when steaming regularly for the public it is as well to have reserve capacity as boilers may develop a defect which takes time to rectify - an unexpected sharp frost when the boiler has not been drained down can wreak havoc with the boiler, its fittings and ancillary equipment such as feedpumps and water pipes.
Boilers are subject to an annual inspection by the insurance company for safety, this comprises a visual inspection for corrosion or damage, then a hydraulic pressure test at one and a half time the normal working pressure, finally a full steam test to ensure everything works correctly and the safety valves are capable of releasing any excess steam.
Forncett now has three boilers to ensure that one is always available for use.
Boiler maintenance consists of frequent blowing down to remove sludge brought in by the feedwater, fittings such as water gauges, pressure gauges and safety valves need frequent checking and servicing to ensure that they work properly. Cleaning out ash and furnace slag is dirty work as is the perpetual de rusting and re painting. Boilers are expensive to run and maintain but essential if a steam engine is to be 'live'
Two Cochran vertical firetube boilers are now on site and arranged to burn solid fuel, currently this consists of the offcuts of willow from the local cricket bat industry, nicely cleaved and cut to a handy length they burn furiously, it is hot work to keep steam up by this means.
This is a recently renovated boiler of the Cochran pattern - it came from Norwich Prison.
This is part of the dirty, expensive and entirely unglamorous part of preserving such equipment, this Cochran boiler - donated by Parmeko of Leicester - has run for a number of years and now needs re tubing, here the open firehole door and tube plate is seen after some of the upper tubes have been cut out.
The third boiler is oil fired and is of the wetback scotch marine type, coming from a Welsh laundry it was originally built and used at Chatham Dockyard. Seen being placed on the new boiler house pad during typically seasonal 'heavy lifting' weather when hands and feet are numb with cold !