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coal stoker boiler

leonz
leonz Member Posts: 1,312
edited June 2020 in Strictly Steam
One of the folks on the coal forum just received his steam coal stoker.
he has both a 2 inch and 3 inch tapping in the steam chest. Can he use both tapping's in a 3 inch drop header or not?

Comments

  • Dave0176
    Dave0176 Member Posts: 1,178
    Yeah the more tappings used the better dry steam.
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  • Steamhead
    Steamhead Member Posts: 17,312
    Pics!
    All Steamed Up, Inc.
    Towson, MD, USA
    Steam, Vapor & Hot-Water Heating Specialists
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    CLamb
  • leonz
    leonz Member Posts: 1,312
    I wish I could get the pics for you but he is in Michigan.

    If you go to the keystoker.com web site they describe the boilers.
  • ethicalpaul
    ethicalpaul Member Posts: 6,379
    No cameras are allowed in Michigan ;)

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  • Shalom
    Shalom Member Posts: 165
    They mention that the boilers work with a Honeywell thermostat.

    How do you turn a coal fire on and off?
  • ratio
    ratio Member Posts: 3,774
    That sounds like the lead-in to a joke:
    How do you turn a coal fire on and off?

    With a shovel! Hahaha!!

  • Steamhead
    Steamhead Member Posts: 17,312
    Shalom said:

    They mention that the boilers work with a Honeywell thermostat.

    How do you turn a coal fire on and off?

    Thermostat starts the draft fan and the stoker, and makes the burn rate go up.
    All Steamed Up, Inc.
    Towson, MD, USA
    Steam, Vapor & Hot-Water Heating Specialists
    Oil & Gas Burner Service
    Consulting
  • Robert_25
    Robert_25 Member Posts: 549
    Coal boilers are huge compared to a modern gas or oil boiler. Does the large steam chest and distance from water line to boiler outlet change the piping requirements?
  • Shalom
    Shalom Member Posts: 165
    Robert_25 said:

    Coal boilers are huge compared to a modern gas or oil boiler

    Which leads to another question, not really serious, but: If you wanted an old-fashioned boiler with the big steam chests like they used to make, could you get one of these and convert it to gas/oil?

    (Not that I would, just wondering if it's possible.)
  • Robert_25
    Robert_25 Member Posts: 549
    edited June 2020
    Yes - converting a boiler from coal to oil/NG was common when oil and NG took over the heating market.
  • ethicalpaul
    ethicalpaul Member Posts: 6,379
    My septic inspector guy just installed a coal hot water boiler a few years ago, so it's still out there I guess. Has an annual coal delivery into his bin from Pennsylvania

    NJ Steam Homeowner.
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  • retiredguy
    retiredguy Member Posts: 971
    If you are going to burn coal in a home I would burn anthracite (hard coal) and not bituminous (soft coal) since hard coal burns very clean with little powered ash while soft coal burns dirty, needs lots of attention, and has a lot of ash (cinders). I serviced and installed large coal boilers of both types for schools, hospitals and industry. "YUCK"
    ethicalpaul
  • dopey27177
    dopey27177 Member Posts: 887
    Yes you can control the heat in a building that fires with coal.
    The Honeywell T stat controls a Honeywell electric operated shut off valve.

    As far as the tappings go I would use both of them.

    Jake
    Steam: The Perfect Fluid for Heating and Some of the Problems
    by Jacob (Jake) Myron
  • leonz
    leonz Member Posts: 1,312
    I have not seen a new comment from the gentleman on the coal pail forum that I mentioned earlier as of today, but as I understood it he was doing the installation himself as he has been living in and taking care of this 2 story farm house for 4 decades.

    I mentioned to him on the forum and in a private message that he could and should use both the two inch and the three inch tapping's to obtain the most steam possible at low pressures to create dry steam quickly to feed to the header pipe to heat his home.

    I am unaware as to whether the steam chests on the keystoker boilers have a second water level tapping to allow the condensate to return to the steam chest at the regulated water level which is one of the very first questions I asked of him in the coal pail forum.
    I also uploaded images of drop headers to the coal pail forum to show the fellow what they looked like and how he could use both the two inch and three inch tapping's of the steam chest to do it.

    When I learn more you will be the first folks I pass the information on to you all about this.

    I know the folks/members on the coal pail forum would welcome all of you to help with installations and trouble shooting of their hot water and steam heating systems .

    The bad thing about the flat bed stokers and the sloped bed coal stokers is that the fire will die out in five minutes if the power goes out and then unburned coal will simply flow out of the hopper and into the ash basket until someone realizes the heats out :'(.
    The tuyer pot stokers that burn rice coal (EFM) and the Axeman Anderson and AHS traveling sled coal stokers that use pea coal have a huge firebed using and induced draft that will stay lit for hours in the event of a power outage.


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