The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1908-07-02
Boiler Disasters and
Their Causes.

Their Causes. /
Paper Read Before the Cha,ttauQua Circle.
1t is surprising how many boiler dis
asters occur. One cannot open paper
but his eyes are greeted with some
account relating how many are killed
and MANNED. Few realize or give a
thought to the real cause for such Sc
rious disasters. Without doubt the
causes are many. and it would be i'm
possible for the writer to 60 into every
one, as his knowledge regarding the
subject does not extend to any great
length, but will try to deal with a few
of the most important, namely, faulty
repairs, negligence and ignorance of
boiler attendants, design and decay.
There is but one general cause for all
boiler explosions, and that is the SIM
pie one that the boiler was not of suffi-
ciens strength to withstand the pressure
to which it was at that time subjected.
This is automatic and may be. made to
cover a multitude of contributing
causes to one or more of which the
explosion is usual directly attributed.
In the days of not knowing there is
always tendency to attribute natural
phenomena, which we are unable to
explain, to some mysterious agency,
and the theories that have been pro-
pounded to account for what happened
are many and strange, while few are
based on real knowledge. 1t matters
iittle what may be the cause of the
weakness of boiler, whether 1t comes
from decay or design, the result is that
when it is not strong enough to with
stand the pressure, it bursts. In the
case of stationary boilers the causes run
the whole gamut, and to the man who
has been in touch with the cheaper
grades of work and the unskilled atten-
dance, the wonder is not that there are
so many disasters, but that so many
boilers hold together as long as they
do.
A good many attendants seem to
think that boiler is a. boiler, and
because 1t is one, it can be subjected
to all kinds of abuse and still remain
intact. Take faulty repairs on any
part of a boiler. For Instance, mud
drumhead is repaired. Here is what
is done in good many cases: A fiat
cast plate about one inch thick and
three or more feet in diameter is used
then subjected to a rising kpressure
The wonder is that it did not let &C
before the forty-pound pressure which
did burst it was reached. OF course i
could not hold, and the reaction of th'
steam made fine skyrockets of the part
that remained intact.
Take again where the water is ba(
and boiler cleaning difficult; the un
skilled and ignorant boiler attendan
is more than apt to neglect the neces
.sary cleaning; and properly speaking
as is often the case, the company be
grudge the service of cOmpeten
man, it often happens the boiler
working on the strength of the scale
Here is one incident: A boiler wa
sent into the shops where Twas work
ing some time back, and when exam
ined it was found that the scale ha
formed 80 thick and so hard OH tn
water-leg of the boiler that the meta
had been eaten thru by the action o
moisture and coal so that q pin coul
be pushed thru the sheets. How nea
the attendants of that boiler we're I
eternity and for how long time wi
never be known, but it is safe to sa
the margin was narrow one.
Another instance that comes to m
mind regarding tae ignorance of som
men employed by company to loo
after or take charge of boiler, hal
pened on the G. P. r. in whose emplo
L was at the time firing on locom'
tive used in the gravel pit spottin
cars for the steam-shovel to load.
watchman was employed to look aft
and keep steam on both the locomoti,
and shovel during the cold nights (
October and November. AS ru
we used to spot the engine faciI
shovel. leaving our caboose down
the end of pit open so as not to
wakened during the night BY any nois