Old Boilerman Trick

Steve Ebels_3

The first thing you need to know about black powder is that it does not burn at an established rate. It combusts totally and completely. Instantly. In other words, it explodes.

In 1971 when dad remodeled the hardware store, one of the carpenters, who was known far and wide as a practical jokester, found an ancient can of FFg on top of a beam in the back room. Every evening the construction crew would take the demo'd construction debris to the back of the lot and burn it. Whip (that's the only name I ever heard him called) got the bright idea to take a 2" pipe nipple, fill it with the powder and screw a cap on each end. After doing so, he threw the bomb into the burn pile and lit it. We waited and waited from what we thought was a safe distance and nothing happened. The fire was nearly burned out so everyone left or was leaving when an explosion of volcanic proportion lifted the entire burn pile about 20' into the air. The acrid smell of black powder hung in the air and we all thought it was pretty cool until we saw the hole one of the pipe caps made through both block walls of the store. The walls were 70' apart. Suffice to say it was an introduction to the Darwin Awards for me at the tender age of 14. It did also however, initiate a lifelong infatuation with things that go BOOM. I love the smell of nitrocellulose (smokeless powder) in the morning to this day. I know Timco can relate.

Roland_13

Old Boilerman Trick

Years ago, my brother-in-laws father(retired plumber)said boilermen used to toss a handfull of black powder into a boiler to clean it up. Was he pulling my leg?

Glen

HMMMMMMMM

flintlock or cap? While I think the scrubbing action of a handfull of PPP may be helpful - I am not sure that it is a recommended method of blowing out the carbon. I would be most worried re the application and getting the darn door shut before she blows. Having survived a few hang fires with the 50 cal - me thinks your leg has been pulled. Sorta like getting sent to the tool crib for a long wait(weight)or an inside turn tubing stretcher.Interesting proposal though. Your family visits must be a riot!!!

Bill W@Honeywell

\"Sanding the flues\"...

Oil-burning steam locomotives would experience soot build up on their boiler flues and tubes, slowing heat transfer, so it was common for the fireman to toss a couple shovel-fulls of sand into the firebox, usually when the locomotive was working hard on a grade. The ferocious draft would suck the sand thru, scour out the carbon, and leave a black, sooty smokescreen behind the train. Generally frowned upon in populated areas and on passenger trains! Usually, oil-burners made very little smoke, if fired properly.

ScottMP

Now theres something

I did'nt know. Thanks Bill.

Scott

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Roland_14

Explosive De-Slagging

Holy cow it's true!

http://bulk.resource.org/courts.gov/states/Iowa.Ct.App/6-251.pdf

nicholas bonham-carter

explosive deslagging

chimney cleaning was at one time accomplished by firing a shotgun up the flue while covering the front with a cloth.one of agatha christies novels describes how this method dislodges a corpse.
another old boilerman trick is to add flax seed to a leaking boiler which apparently works--nbc

Unknown

Heard of them

doing similar things to a dry water-well too,, and it has worked,, although I wouldn`t drink from it!

Dave

mtfallsmikey

Dad's \"trick\"

Was to use TSP. Dumped it into a supply tap before filling. I was looking for TSP the other day, couldn't find any...is it still made??

eluv8

TSP

Tri sodium phosphate, commonly used to clean walls before painting. Check out your local hardware store paint section.
I wonder what it does to the ph levels.

gerry gill

it raises it.

but when ever i've tried it, it has made the water line go bezerk..i use rhomar now to raise the ph.

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Maine Doug_74

Sanding the flues

is also done in coal burners. Double dirty smoke and soot came out and you wanted to have the wind on your side to avoid the rain. Sometimes when the engineer shut off the throttle you get a puff back and on a hand fired engine that could be nasty if the butterfly firebox doors were open.

Timco

I load cowboy loads with FFFg and just a cap-full makes quite the poof...I can't imagine what a handful would do...besides making a lot of pressure!

Tim

Greg_41

boiler leak

I just heard about flax seed, but previously for low pressure steam I use oatmeal to get throuth the winter, there's also toothpicks or soft wood splints for pin holes in a casting. Old timers told me sand holes in the castings were common and fixed with wood alot.

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Paul Fredricks_6

This brings me back to my high school days. My friends had a local band and somehow I ended up as the guy in charge of explosions (I had the nickname "Pyro" back then.

I used smokeless powder in a coffee can with Rocket engine ignitors and a home made board with switches to light the various flash pots.

Almost blew up the guitarist once, and another time I almost ignited the school auditorium.

I'm so glad my son only builds large scale potato launchers.

Unknown

Speaking of explosions...

It was a dark but not stormy night, the drummer had just cracked his brand new Zildjan crash cymbal and I happened to have an M-80 or two in my pocket. We took it out back of the industrial warehouse like practice place and put it over an M-80 with the fuse sticking out the hole and lit the frigger. The buildings were 3 stories tall and that cymbal floated straight up like a flying saucer, almost in slow motion, and CLEARED THE ROOF by at least 2 more stories. It then paused in the air and then began a side to side flutter as it came crashing back down. Absolutely incredible! So somebody yells, "That was COOOOL!! Let's do it AGAIN!!" And from out of nowhere from the dark we hear, "You better NOT or I'm calling the COPS!!"

Unknown

I HOPE no,

SANE person is getting any ideas,, black powder pipe bombs, shotgun chimney treatments, M-80s in your pocket?
Land Of The Free?,, is only if you live long enough to be that way,, be careful what you say guys.

Dave