How to lift an 800 pound boiler 16"'s off the deck, with one man...

Mark Eatherton

I was going to borrow my friends engine hoist to do this trick, but due to the lack of a slab near the base of the boiler pad, I coulodn't do it the easy way. SOOOoo, I let ingenuity kick in, and within 3 hours had it in place. Enjoy!

Harvey Ramer

Where did you hook the winch to?

Ironman

Mark,
You gotta gives us some more details. Did you pull it out of the shed?

Harvey Ramer

I'm guessing the boiler went up on that pedestal beside the wood shed. It's about 16".

Gordy

Your ramp is laying on its back in the pic. So when flipped,over in place on your blocking by the perch it's going to be basically a fer by fer ramp, and that plastic is the slider under the boiler going up the ramp...... Close? Oh yeah block and tackle Hooke some where out of pic.

Mark Eatherton

Sorry gang. Tried uploading a bunch of pictures, and left while they were uploading, and only one up loaded. Gordy, you're on the right track. I will try and load the balance of the pictures here, and give the backs story on this (nearly ) deadly boiler later. Harv, I used Lil Pepe for the "anchor"

Gordy

I was wondering about rub rails I knew you were not that daring

It's,actually amazing what one can do when he knows his resources, and makes it work. They wonder how the pyramids were built.

ChrisJ

Do you have pics showing the final installation?
I'm curious why it's outside and what it's job is.

Mark Eatherton

Forgot to show you the "anchor"... Dan got a ride in Lil Pepe :-)

Mark Eatherton

Missing picture of Lil Pepe...

Gordy

What do you have going on there professor Eatherton?

Harvey Ramer

There's Lil Pepe!

I thought maybe Lil Pepe was short for little people but I didn't think they would make the best anchor..lol

I work by myself too and solutions are needed on a daily basis. I employ sky hooks frequently

Good going Mark!

Mark Eatherton

Chris, I only put the boiler on the pad this last summer. Needed to get it out of the way of other timely projects. Hope to get it completed in the next few years, along with 4 more solar thermal panels (I have two here already). Haven't even started piping it up yet. It will be a saw dust boiler when completed. I have a saw mill about 5 miles away from my mountain home, so the saw dust is extremely cheap ($20 for all you can haul). When completed, this boiler will be used to recharge the thermal battery I am eventually installing. It will only be used while I am here and can observe its operation.

Gordy, onece you understand the power of a lever and fulcrum, you have a good idea of how to move anything. I cheated on this one, because I kept spraying the plastic deck with silicone spray. Truth be known, I probably could have pushed it up there with a helper, but slow and steady is the BEST way to do these precarious jobs, especially when you're by yourself...

ME

Gordy

Silicone spray. That's not cheating it's a resource. Saw dust 20 bucks all you can haul that's a deal. Can't wait to see the setup, obviously mass is your friend judging by the iron.

SWEI

Eight sections of triple pass -- that's a fair bit of flame taming there.

DanHolohan

I've said it before, Mark. If ever I find myself on Gilligan's Island, I want you and your Swiss Army knife to be there as well.

Mark Eatherton

I some how missed some critical pictures. The length of the boiler is such that had I simply used the ramp as a point to point ramp, I'd have run into serious problems at the apex of the ramp. If you will notice on the first picture of the upside down ramp frame, the fulcrum is off center as it pertains to the balance point of the ramp.

As I pulled the boiler up the ramp, the ramp eventually "table topped" and allowed me a straight flat horizontal shot to the 16" high base. The actual event of topping off was very slow and extremely controlled, which is a welcome condition when holding 800 pounds 18" off the ground.

Thanks for the kudos Dan. And thanks to all for the nice compliments. Happy 2015!

ME

Gordy

I forgot to put that in my initial description of the event. I was wondering why you would have made an intermediate ramp support to a point like that, then it hit me. Well measured out, and thought out.

I had to get,this old 30's service elevator system out of the elevator house on the 3rd floor roof through a 3' door so the space could be used for catering kitchen exhaust, and make up air equipment. Some disassembly required the main shaft, and ring gear was 1200#. Using 3 chain cumalongs we slid the parts to the door, and I had a crane to suck it out the door holding the parts back with cumalongs until it was through the door.

Note the solid brass ring gear, and brake pulley. It's getting put back together to be displayed in the brew house.

The motor was 20 hp. 300# The control panel was 1" plate steel 400#. The base was 600#.

icesailor

Some become amazed when they see what we can do alone when we have a need to do something.

Ingenious. No one is going to steal those 4"X4's for anything.

I used 2"X12" planks and rolled such things up the planks. I always had in mind another use for the wood. Planks could go on my pipe staging. Or on roof brackets, I always painted the planks gray when I first bought them so I could spot them when some woodpecker or roofer took them without permission.

I once bought 6 planks, took them to a job and painted them immediately after hours. The CG/owner came by and almost fell over laughing when I told him it was to keep his pecker heads from cutting up MY wood for headers. He just thought that was the funniest thing he ever heard. I got back the next AM about 10 AM and found that I only had 5 planks now. I went around looking and finally went up on the roof looking. There was the missing plank. Cut into two 4" lengths on roof brackets to shingle between two dormers. By his Supervisor. I told them to replace my plank and paint it while they were at it. They never did.

While the wood peckers may have been Jonesing for my planks, they wouldn't want your 4X4's.

Years ago, I had this helper/apprentice. He had been a commercial fisherman in New Bedford. He then worked in a shipyard. He was huge and strong. The boss might say, go to such and such place. We have to put a kitchen unit on the third floor. Its on the job now. I'll send a couple of guys down at 9 O'Clock. **** would say to me, lets get that thing up there before those other guys get here so we don't get hurt. So, up we went. 9 O'clock came, the boss showed up with the two idiots and the unit was already on the third floor and being connected.

He had a great expression that has followed me for my whole life since then.

"KEEP ONE END ON THE GROUND!!!!!!"

Abracadabra

I wonder if Mark was involved in building the pyramids...

RobG

Is Lil Pepe your "little mule" from the movie?

Mark Eatherton

Yes, Rob, Romancing the Stone.

Gordy, cool job. Riggers are amazing to watch work. And a good crane operator is priceless….

NYplumber

Good thinking Mark! Glad to see your still at work working on the project. Cant wait to see the finished job with the thermal battery and solar collectors.

Paul48

Mark Eatherton said:

Yes, Rob, Romancing the Stone.

Gordy, cool job. Riggers are amazing to watch work. And a good crane operator is priceless….

I watched a crane operator "catch" a 14 ton press section that was going out of the 3rd floor of a building I worked in. It started to go before anyone was ready, and all you could hear was the engine of the crane start screaming. He picked it without even a sway. I can't imagine the crater that would have made.

Gordy

It's all about control. In order to have total control you have to eliminate all, or as many variables possible.

Gordy

Mark how Do you plan on feeding fuel to the beast? Straight saw dust, or processed saw dust into pellets, or logs?

Mark Eatherton

Like this, except mine will have an induction blower (EBM Papst DCECM blower) connected to my main frame computer which will vary the blower speed based on temperatures (flue gas and water).

I consider fueling it with stumps (google stump stove) but decided this would give a much longer burn with minimum of maintenance, I can also burn pellets in this unit if I get the urge.

I will essentially set the drum heater in a position near the back of the boiler,and will direct its flue gasses into the combustion chamber of the 3 pass boiler.

I will probably depend on an air moving system connected to a large commercial shop vac for removing ash and refilling with fresh materials.

http://www.naturalbuildingblog.com/sawdust-stoves/

ME

Mark Eatherton

Like this, except mine will have an induction blower (EBM Papst DCECM blower) connected to my main frame computer which will vary the blower speed based on temperatures (flue gas and water).

I consider fueling it with stumps (google stump stove) but decided this would give a much longer burn with minimum of maintenance, I can also burn pellets in this unit if I get the urge.

I will essentially set the drum heater in a position near the back of the boiler,and will direct its flue gasses into the combustion chamber of the 3 pass boiler.

I will probably depend on an air moving system connected to a large commercial shop vac for removing ash and refilling with fresh materials.

http://www.naturalbuildingblog.com/sawdust-stoves/

ME

Mark Eatherton

Like this Gordy.

http://www.naturalbuildingblog.com/sawdust-stoves/

ME

Gordy

No wonder I get on this site everyday. You'll be adapting that well.

Kinda wondering how much the side of the barrel emitts heat. It would seem initially the saw dust would act as an insulator. Slowly heating the barrel from the top down as the saw dust burns away. ill bet its good, and hot near the bottom of the burn cycle.

ChrisJ

Has anyone ever built a gasifier to run a gas boiler off of wood?

Gordy

I walked away, but cant help, but ask.......If you had a custom barrel inserted in that beast, and it was turned on end...........oh never mind.

Mark Eatherton

Chris, Check out Pellergy. They make a retrofit pellet burner for certain gas/oil boiler designs.

ChrisJ

Mark Eatherton said:

Chris, Check out Pellergy. They make a retrofit pellet burner for certain gas/oil boiler designs.

Hi Mark,
I was curious if anyone used a setup that pulled only the fuels out of the wood such as a gasifier setup. If my understanding is correct, a gasifier essentially boils the hydrocarbons out of wood so they can be burned away from the wood in something such as an internal combustion engine in a car.

Mark Eatherton

Gordy, its actually a barrel within a barrel. I've already tested it with the stump, and it did quite well. My prototype is a 30 gallon trash can with a 20 gallon trash can inside of the 30. I plan on filling the annulus between the inner and outer barrel with Vermiculite, or rock wool to lessen combustion chamber standby losses during burn, and will also insulate the hot flue gas leader from the combustion chamber to the boiler vessel.

I am seriously considering going to a schedule 40 steel pipe within a pipe, just to give longevity to the assembly, but am having trouble finding a reasonable length with the proper thickness to make it work. My friend Richard "Der Heatmeister" Graves is an accomplished welder, so I am not worried about those details. We will figure it out.

What is the other consideration you started to express in another post?

ME

Gordy

What about ductile pipe 1/2" thick wall? For water mains 12" 16" diameter on up? That would give the inner pipe (barrel) some mass. The outter does not seem to get the abuse. Get a section with the bell end on it might be useful bell down at the bottom?

Won't you need two stove set ups? One burning, and one on the ready line to take over after the first one is done, and while the one that was burning cools enough to reload, the second one takes over. I don't know how much actual burn time is needed to heat that triple pass. I suppose once on line, and heated up it'll deffinetly simmer a while

Disregard last post I understand now, most heat generated is flue gas, and the lid. Not so much the sides. That was evident after watching some of the homemade models where the barrel was painted. Sides never got hot enough to burn the paint off. That was not even the double barrel design.

There were some real homemade contraptions in that link wowsy!.

Gordy

Another thought what about clay flue tile for the inner chamber? Not sure if you could get large enough diameter though.

Mark Eatherton

Good ideas and good questions Gordy. I did consider filling the annulus between the two barrels with cement to avoid metal burnout. Using a CTP liner might be a better idea, provided I can find the right size. As for redundancy, hadn't really considered that because its not my primary source of energy, only supplemental and only while I am in direct observation. Remember, this is Hydronicahhh, and it is a major ongoing experiment. We live and learn, and learn as we live!

ME

Mark Eatherton

Chris, I have seen some example of wood gasification on the net, and they don't look anything like a boiler. As you noted, they look more like a pressure cooker. And yes, I did consider going that route at one point, but it is even more labor intensive for monitoring, and operation. Was thinking of hooking the gasifier to a gas powered generator and use the electricity in my radiant windows, Maybe in the future… Wood gasification is old technology. Simple, but old. Wood gasification boilers are a slightly different approach, but can be very efficient. But they can also be very dirty and maintenance intensive.

ME

ChrisJ

Mark Eatherton said:

Chris, I have seen some example of wood gasification on the net, and they don't look anything like a boiler. As you noted, they look more like a pressure cooker. And yes, I did consider going that route at one point, but it is even more labor intensive for monitoring, and operation. Was thinking of hooking the gasifier to a gas powered generator and use the electricity in my radiant windows, Maybe in the future… Wood gasification is old technology. Simple, but old. Wood gasification boilers are a slightly different approach, but can be very efficient. But they can also be very dirty and maintenance intensive.

ME

Radiant windows?
My 150 year old windows radiate too. Mainly cold wind.

Seriously though, what are radiant windows? Do they have electric heating elements molded into the glass?

Gordy

I did find some output info. On the 50 gal outer 40 gal inner size. Depending on draft they start out at about 3KW, and twords the end reach 7KW for a shorter period.

Question though Mark in all the double barrel designs I was looking at. The flue pipe is about 10" up from the bottom of the outter barrel. The combustion air comes in through the ash drawer goes up through the sawdust core, and those hot gases go up exit the top of the inner barrel hit the lid, and back down to the flue pipe to exit the stove. If you fill the annulus that would impedance air flow in that design.

But I "think" your flue pipe will exit the lid for what your trying to do?