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Boiler explosion

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BobC
BobC Member Posts: 5,478
edited October 2018 in THE MAIN WALL
A hot water boiler exploded in Duxbury, MA on Sunday
    An explosion in a Duxbury, Massachusetts house has caused serious damage to the building.

    According to Duxbury Fire, responders arrived on the scene at 16 Laurel Street in Duxbury just after 4 p.m. on Sunday to find an oil fired water boiler had exploded.

    All occupants were home at the time of the explosion but were able to escape without any injuries, officials said.

    There is, however, significant damage to the house, including the walls, windows, waste water and structure.

    The building inspector has declared the house uninhabitable.

    This is a developing story. More information will be added as it is made available.

It sounds like the pressure relif valve did not do it's job.

Bob
Smith G8-3 with EZ Gas @ 90,000 BTU, Single pipe steam
Vaporstat with a 12oz cut-out and 4oz cut-in
3PSI gauge

Comments

  • EBEBRATT-Ed
    EBEBRATT-Ed Member Posts: 15,546
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    Or it didn't have a relief valve or someone put a pipe plug in a leaking relief valve
    1Matthias
  • Solid_Fuel_Man
    Solid_Fuel_Man Member Posts: 2,646
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    It would be interesting to see pictures of the aftermath of that
    Serving Northern Maine HVAC & Controls. I burn wood, it smells good!
  • Ken D.
    Ken D. Member Posts: 836
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    It is incredible how much energy is in that. About 20 yrs. ago in Phila. a gas water heater had a blocked relief valve and a stuck thermostat. It took off like a rocket through the guy's house, across 4 lanes of traffic into the house across the street. Thank
    God no one was hurt.
  • Ironman
    Ironman Member Posts: 7,376
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    Do you have a link to the news article?
    Bob Boan
    You can choose to do what you want, but you cannot choose the consequences.
  • BobC
    BobC Member Posts: 5,478
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    This is from the Globe, it's behind a paywall so the link won't do you much good -

    https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2018/10/15/fire-officials-recommend-boiler-inspections-after-duxbury-home-explosion/ufogUCxmk0vkZeCPsm2uUO/story.html?event=event12

    Fire officials recommend boiler inspections after Duxbury home explosion


    By Andres Picon Globe Correspondent October 15, 2018

    Duxbury Fire PIO
    An explosion caused about $75,000 worth of damage to a Duxbury home.



    Duxbury fire officials have issued a warning about the dangers of uninspected heating systems after a boiler exploded in a Duxbury home on Sunday.

    “Remember with the beginning of heating season here to have your heating systems including furnaces and boilers serviced,” the fire department said in a tweet Sunday night. “This is also the time to have fireplaces and chimneys cleaned. The incident we had this afternoon highlights the importance of this.”

    Firefighters responded to a house at 16 Laurel St. around 3:57 p.m. to find that an oil-fired boiler had exploded with the residents and their pets inside. No one was injured, said Duxbury Fire Captain Rob Reardon.

    The explosion originated about 30 feet to the left of the front door inside the house, and blew through three walls before knocking out a window on the right side of the house, Reardon said.
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    “It’s very lucky that no one was hurt,” he said.

    There was major damage worth about $75,000 to walls, windows, plumbing, and other structures, Reardon said. A building inspector deemed the house uninhabitable.

    “There was a failure of multiple safety devices on the boiler and an inspection could have prevented this from happening,” Reardon said.

    There was no fire, and the exact cause of the explosion is still being investigated by the state fire marshal’s office, Reardon said.

    I don't know if we will ever be told the "official explanation" but we all know what went wrong.

    Bob
    Smith G8-3 with EZ Gas @ 90,000 BTU, Single pipe steam
    Vaporstat with a 12oz cut-out and 4oz cut-in
    3PSI gauge
  • Leonard
    Leonard Member Posts: 903
    edited October 2018
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    https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=exploing+water+heater&view=detail&mid=E7BCE7F29FB8B0FA1523E7BCE7F29FB8B0FA1523&FORM=VIRE

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3i_ZGPtm68
  • BobC
    BobC Member Posts: 5,478
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    I've seen that video.

    As a kid I can remember the occasional stack hot water heater launching itself leaving a hole in someones roof. There is a tremendous amount of pent up energy when water turns into steam.

    Bob
    Smith G8-3 with EZ Gas @ 90,000 BTU, Single pipe steam
    Vaporstat with a 12oz cut-out and 4oz cut-in
    3PSI gauge
  • Leonard
    Leonard Member Posts: 903
    edited October 2018
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    Kinda like toy compressed air/water rockets we played with as kids.

    Except with super heated steam , there's a large amount of steam exiting the tank, giving a huge thrust for a relatively long time.

    Assuming 300 psi internal pressure and ~ 20 inch dia tank, And assuming total bottom comes off at burst, the push on top of tank looks like ~ 94,299 pounds of thrust, ~ 47 TONS of push.

    But with a weight of < 100 pounds the acceleration and thus eventual velocity is enormous. F=ma

    No wonder it had the speed to blow a hole in house. It's going so fast house acts as if it was tissue paper.

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