IMPROVEMENTS IN BOILER FITTINGS
Year: 1870

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Henry Bailey, of Albion Works, Salford,
in the County of Lancaster, Brassfounder and Manufacturer of
Instruments for the Promotion of the Statistical and Economical
Production of Steam Power, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN
BOILER FITTINGS."
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Henry Bailey.
at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on
the 3rd March 1870.
I, WILLIAM HENRY BAILEY, of Albion Works, Salford, in the
County of Lancaster, Brassfounder and Manufacturer of Instruments for
the Promotion of the Statistical and Economical Production of Steam
Power, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN BOILER FITTINGS," to be as follows:-
:-
In the inside of boilers where water is heated or evaporated a scale is
often formed which in time will fill up the openings or passages or taps

page_text: or other fittings connected to the boiler, and will prevent the passage of
water through such openings. To prevent the filling up of these
passages by the scale I use a tongue or blade or scraper inside the
passage leading into the boiler of water gauge taps or other taps fixed
to the boilers. This scraper may be worked from the outside, and it may
be attached to the valve spindle as is the case in the water gauges
known as Bailey's Patent water gauge. The scraper may be made of
brass or other material suitable for the purpose, and is of flat, or spiral,
or other convenient shape; the wide sides are made to touch the sides of
the inside passage of the water gauge or other taps. When from time
to time this scraper is turned or moved to and fro by a handle on the
outside of the tap the scale will be loosened, and may be blown out on
-opening-the-tap.
In the next place my Invention consists in introducing between the
top and bottom taps of glass water gauges a hollow tube of brass or
other suitable material in such a way that the water and steam in the
boiler have free acess to the interior of this tube; I place in this tube a
float which carries at its upper end a spindle, and to which is attached a
valve opening inwards, having its seat in the upper part of the top tap.
This valve may be held up to its seat by a spring. Above the valve is
fixed a whistle in such a manner that when the valve opens the steam
from the boiler escapes and be the whistle. When the water in the
boiler falls to a level endangering the safety of the boiler the float falls
and will cause the valve at the top to open, which as already stated will
allow the steam to escape and blow the whistle, thus calling the
attendant's attention to the water having fallen to a dangerous lever.
In the next place my Invention consists in fitting to the bottom glass
water gauge tap or gauge lock of a boiler or tube of sufficient length
having at its upper end a plug of easily fusible metal, and also a whistle.
As long as the water is above the aperture of the tap the tube will be
filled by water, and the surrounding air will cool it, which will prevent
the plug from fusing, but the moment this water level falls below the
opening of the tap the water in the tube will run back into the boiler,
and steam will take its place, the heat of which will melt the plug and
escape through the whistle; the attendant will thus receive warning to
feed water into the boiler to prevent damage or explosion. I may place
a tap under the fusible plug so as to shut off the steam when replacing
the melted plug by a new one. This apparatus may be connected

page_text: directly to the boiler at a point lower than which the level of the water
in the boiler should not fall. I may introduce into the passage of this
tube connected directly to the boiler or scraper similar to the one used in
water gauges and other taps, and so described above, in order to keep it
clear of boiler scale. To prevent explosion of kitchens or house boilers
I fix the above described apparatus to such boilers in such a manner
that as soon as the water in the boiler becomes dangerously low the plug
melts, and the escaping steam blows the whistle calling attention to the
dangerous state of the boiler.
My Invention further consists in a novel construction of gauge cocks.
I fix into the boiler a tube having at its outer end an inclined valve seat,
and at the upper part of the outer end of this tube I form a hinge, to
which a cover or lid is hinged so shaped that when it is held down or
forced down by its own weight and turning on the hinge it closes the
opening of the tube and forms a valve. The cover, or lid, or valve may
be made sufficiently heavy to close upon the valve seat and prevent the
water or steam escaping; or to a projection on this cover a weight may
be attached to hold it into the valve seat. The joint between the valve
or cover and valve seat may be metal on metal, or india-rubber or other
suitable material may be used. A gauge cock constructed as above
described will also act as a safety valve. The cover can be so weighted
that it will lift when a certain stated pressure is exceeded in the boiler,
and will allow water or steam to escape.
My Invention also relates to a novel method of exhibiting or indicating
on the weight by which the safety valve of a boiler is held down to what
pressure the safety valve is weighted. For this purpose I form a toothed
rack on the safety valve lever; into this rack gears a pinion arranged to
the weight, which in its turn is geared into a train of wheels giving
motion to a dial plate whereupon are marked numbers which correspond
to the pressure of the steam in the boiler, to which the safety valve is
loaded when the weight is moved to or from the fulcrum of the safety
valve lever. The dial plate may be arranged so that only one number is
shown through an opening in the weight at a time, and this number
indicates the pressure to which the safety valve is loaded when the
weight has been moved along the safety valve lever to the particular point
corresponding to the steam pressure. I may also mark on the dial plate
the temperature corresponding to the pressure indicated by the dial.

page_text: I may fix the dial on the weight and connect the train of wheels before
mentioned with a finger that will be moved around the dial when the
weight is moved forward or backwards, and the number pointed at by
the finger will correspond to the pressure to which the safety valve is
loaded.
My further improvements relate to pressure gauges. In many cases
it is useful to know not only the pressure of steam, liquids, or vapours in
a boiler or vessel, but also the temperature of such steam, liquids, or
vapours under pressure. For this purpose I mark on the dial of the
pressure gauge attached to such boiler or vessel figures indicating both
the pressure and the corresponding temperature.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Henry Bailey in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 17th August 1870.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
HENRY BAILEY, of the Albion Works, Salford, in the County of
Lancaster, Brassfounder and Manufacturer of Instruments for the
Promotion of the Statistical and Economical Production of Steam
Power, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Third day of March, in the year of our
Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy, in the thirty-third year
of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give and grant
unto me, the said William Henry Bailey, my executors, administrators,
and assigns, or such others as I, the said William Henry Bailey, my
executors, administrators, and assigns, should at any time agree with,
and no others, from time to time and at all times thereafter during the
term therein expressed, should and lawfully might make, use, exercise,
and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the
Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN
BOILER FITTINGS," upon the condition, amongst others, that I, the said
William Henry Bailey, by an instrument in writing under my hand and
seal, should particularly describe and ascertain the nature of my said
Invention, and in what manner the same was to be performed, and
cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent Office within six

page_text: calendar months next and immediately after the date of the said Letters
Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Henry Bailey, do hereby
declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same
is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and
by the following statement and accompanying Drawings, that is to
say:
In the inside of boilers where water is heated or evaporated a scale is
often formed which in time will fill up the openings or passages of taps
or other fittings connected to the boiler, and will prevent the passage of
water through such openings. To prevent the filling up of these
passages by the scale I use a tongue, or blade, or scraper inside the
passage (leading into the boiler) of water gauge taps or other taps fixed
to the boiler. This scraper may be worked from the outside, and it may
be attached to the valve spindle as in the case of the water gauges known
as Bailey's Patent water gauge. The scraper may be made of brass or
other material suitable for the purpose, and is of a flat, or spiral, or
other convenient shape; the wide sides are made to touch the sides of
the inside passage of the water guage or other taps.
to time this scraper is turned or moved to and fro by a handle on the
outside of the tap the scale will be loosened, and may be blown out on
opening the tap.
When from time
In the next place my Invention consists in introducing between the
top and bottom tap of glass water gauges a hollow tube of brass or other
suitable material in such a way that the water and steam in the boiler
have free access to the interior of this tube. I place in this tube a float
which carries at its upper end a spindle, and to which is attached a valve
opening inwards, having its seat in the upper part of the top tap. This
valve may be held up to its scat by a spring. Above the valve is fixed
a whistle in such a manner that when the valve opens the steam from
the boiler escapes and blows the whistle. When the water in the boiler
falls to a level endangering the safety of the boiler the float falls and
will cause the valve at the top to open, which, as already stated, will
allow the steam to escape and blow the whistle, thus calling the
attendant's attention to the water having fallen to a dangerous level.
In the next place my Invention consists in fitting to the bottom glass
water gauge tap or gauge cock of a boiler a tube of sufficient length,
having at its upper end a plug of easily fusible metal and also a whistle.

page_text: As long as the water is above the aperture of the tap the tube will be
filled by water and the surrounding air will cool it, which will prevent
the plug from fusing, but the moment the water level falls below the
opening of the tap the water in the tube will run back into the boiler
and steam will take its place, the heat of which will melt the plug and
escape through the whistle, the attendant will thus receive warning to
feed water into the boilers to prevent damage or explosion. I may place
a tap under the fusible plug so as to shut off the steam when replacing
the melted plug by a new one. This apparatus may be connected
directly to the boiler at a point lower than which the level of the
water in the boiler should not fall; I may introduce into the passage of
this tube connected directly to the boiler a scraper similar to the one
used in water gauges and other taps, and as described above, in order to
keep it clear of boiler scale. To prevent explosions of kitchen or house
boilers I fix the above-described apparatus to such boilers in such a
manner that as soon as the water in the boiler becomes dangerously low
the plug melts and the escaping steam blows the whistle, calling
attention to the dangerous state of the boiler.
My Invention further consists in a novel construction of gauge cocks.
I fix into the boiler a tube having at its outer end an inclined valve seat,
and at the upper part of the outer end of this tube I form a hinge, to
which a cover or lid is hinged so shaped that when it is held down or
forced down by its own weight and turning on the hinge it closes the
opening of the tube and forms a valve. The cover or lid or valve may
be made sufficiently heavy to close upon the valve seat and prevent the
water or steam escaping, or to a projection on this cover a weight may
be attached to hold it on to the valve seat. The joint between the valve.
or cover and valve seat may be metal, or metal on india-rubber, or other
suitable material may be used. A gauge cock constructed as above
described will also act as a safety valve. The cover can be so weighted
that it will lift when a certain stated pressure is exceeded in the boiler,
and will allow water or steam to escape.
My Invention also relates to a novel method of exhibiting or indicating
on the weight by which the safety valve of a boiler is held down to what
pressure the safety valve is weighted. For this purpose I form a toothed
rack on the safety valve lever; into this rack gears a pinion arranged in
the weight in its turn is geared into a train of wheels giving motion to
a dial plate whereupon are marked numbers which correspond to the

page_text: pressure of the steam in the boiler, to which the safety valve is loaded
when the weight is moved to or from the fulcrum of the safety valve.
The dial plate may be arranged so that only one number is shewn
through an opening in the weight at a time, and this number indicates
the pressure to which the safety valve is loaded when the weight has
been moved along the safety valve lever to the particular point corre-
sponding to the steam pressure. I may also mark on the dial plate the
temperature corresponding to the pressure indicated by the dial. I may
fix the dial on the weight, and connect the train of wheels before
mentioned with a finger that will be moved round the dial when the
weight is moved forward or backward, and the number pointed at by the
finger will correspond to the pressure to which the safety valve is loaded.
My further improvements relate to pressure gauges. In many cases it
is useful to know not only the pressure of steam, liquid, or vapours in
a boiler or vessel, but also the temperature of such steam, liquids, or.
vapours under pressure for this purpose I mark on the dial of the
pressure gauge attached to such boiler or vessel figures indicating both
the pressure and the corresponding temperature.
In order that my Invention may be better understood I have attached
hereunto a Sheet of Drawings having letters of reference marked
thereupon, to which Drawings I will here refer.
Fig. 1 is a sectional view of the lower valve of a glass water gauge
constructed according to my present Invention. In the said Fig. a is;
the aforesaid scraper; b is the lower end of the glass tube; and c is the.
5 valve spindle, an end view of which is shewn at Fig. 2. The scraper a
consists of a blade of metal, the width of which is made nearly as great,
as the diameter of the passage d formed in the valve body, and com- .
municating with the interior of the boiler, so that when the valve
spindle c is rotated the said scraper will loosen any incrustation formed.
0 in the said passage. The said spindle is fitted with a hand wheel or
disc e formed of wood, and secured to the said spindle by means of the.
metal washers f, f, one of which is furnished with pins which pass
through the body of the disc e and the other washer, thus connecting
the wood disc and the washers together, and as the said washers are
5 fitted on a square formed on the end of the spindle c the hand wheel is
prevented from turning round on the said spindle.

page_text: Fig. 3 is a sectional view of a boiler gauge cock fitted with the
scraper a and hand wheel e, the action of the said scraper being the same
as in the case of the valve just described.
Fig. 4 is an clevation, partly in section, and drawn about half the full
size, of a glass water gauge fitted with my improved low water alarm
apparatus. In the said Figure is the glass tube, and g, g', are the upper
and lower valve bodies, which are connected together by the metal
tube h. The said tube forms a chamber, which is in communication with
the interior of the boiler through the passages d, d, and in which
chamber is contained the float i, which is suspended from the small
valve j, the diameter of the said valve and the weight and size of the
said float being so proportioned that on the water level falling to a
dangerous extent the weight of the float will overcome the pressure on
the said valve, and the said valve will open and steam will blow through
the whistle %, thereby sounding an alarm.
l
The next portion of my Invention is illustrated by Figures 5, 6, and 7.
In Fig. 5, represents the end of a boiler, to which is fixed the valve m,
and on the body of the said valve is fixed or formed the vertical tube n,
on the upper end of which is screwed the metal globe n¹, shewn to a
larger scale in Fig. 6. A passage formed in the upper part of the said
globe is closed by the fusible plug o, which is retained in its place by
the screwed nipple o¹, on which is fixed or formed a suitable whistle.
When the said plug is fixed in position the valve in m is opened so as to
allow water to ascend into and occupy the interior of the vertical tube
and the globe n¹. The action which takes place on the level of the water
in the boiler falling to a dangerous extent has been herein-before
described. The cock or valve m¹ may be used as a gauge cock. Fig. 7
represents a kitchen boiler or circulation boiler" fitted with a modi-
fication of the last-described apparatus. In this example the valve m is
connected with the said boiler by means of the tube 2, the alarm
apparatus being fixed in such a suitable position that it will not be
affected by the heat of the fire.
Two forms of gauge cocks constructed according to the next portion
of my Invention are shown at Figs. 8 and 9. In Fig. S the passage d
is closed by the valve », which is pressed against its seat by the levers,
on which is fixed or formed a weight s¹, the size of which is made
proportionate to the steam pressure the valve has to resist. In Fig. 9
""

page_text: an inclined seat is formed, on which fits the hinged valve t, which is
pressed against its seat by the weighted lever 8, which is by preference
formed in one piece with the said valve. The passage through the gauge
cock may be readily opened by raising the levers in either of the
examples, and the said gauge cocks may be made capable of giving
warning in the case of the pressure in the boiler rising to a dangerous
extent, as has been before mentioned.
The portion of my Invention relating to safety valves is illustrated by
Figs. 10, 11, and 12. In Fig. 10, u is a portion of a safety valve lever
having a toothed rack formed on the under side thereof. The said rack
gears into a train of wheels mounted within the weight and shewn by
dotted lines, through which wheels a rotatory motion is communicated
to a dial plate when the weight v is moved along the lever, the arrange.
ment being such that on the said weight arriving at a position which
will impose a certain weight on the safety valve, say, for example, sixty
pounds, figures indicating the said pressure and marked on the said dial
will be presented at an opening in the front of the weight, as shewn in
the Drawing. In Fig. 11 the wheel or pinion on the index arbor gears
directly with the rack on the lever u. In Fig. 12 the dial is stationary,
and the rack gears with a wheel fixed on a central arbor, which carries
an index which indicates the pressure on the said dial.
Having now described the nature of my said Invention, I would have
it to be understood that I claim,-
First. The addition of scrapers to gauge or other cocks or valves fitted
to boilers for the purpose and acting as herein-before described.
Secondly. The addition of low water alarm apparatus to the glass
gauges fitted to boilers, substantially as herein described and as illustrated
in the attached Drawings.
Thirdly. The low water alarm apparatus applied substantially as
herein described and as illustrated by Figures 5, 6, and 7 of the attached
Drawings.
Fourthly. The gauge cocks illustrated by Figs. 8 and 9 of the attached
Drawings, or any mere modification thereof.
Fifthly. So fitting and arranging the weights of safety valve levers.
that the pressure of steam requisite to open the valves will be indicated
on the said weights, substantially as herein-before described.

page_text: And, lastly. Marking on the dials of pressure gauges the temperatures
corresponding to the various pressures indicated by the said gauges.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Henry Bailey, have here-
unto set my hand and seal, this Fifteenth day of August, in the
year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy.
WILLIAM HENRY BAILEY. (L.S.)