Rensselaer Republican, Volume 18, Number 20, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 January 1886 — Care of Boilers. [ARTICLE]

Care of Boilers.

Steam boilers are many times injured seriously through the injudicious use of solvents, which, with proper use, would prove very effective and all that conld be desired. It woxild seem to be almost unnecessary to say that when a solvent is used in a boiler, which contains a large amount of scale, and considerable quantities of it are loosened and fall down on the bottom of the boiler-shell, it is very essential that it rehould be removed. If it is not, there is a strong probability, that the boiler will be burned the first time it is fired up after lying idle a day or so. This has happened many times in our experience, and we find it necessary in most cases to specially insist upon a thorough cleaning following the application of a solvent to a foul boiler. Generally it is necessary to shut down and blow off a boiler and open the hand-holes to do the necessary cleaning. With these plates removed it is a very easy matter to thoroughly rake out all loose scale. In most cases, it is also well to remove the manhole plate, send a man inside with suitable chisels and scraping tools, and scrape oft' all pieces of scale which have become partilflly loosened, and see that they, also, are raked-out. This sort of 1 treatment will not only prevent any damage to the boiler-shell, but will, if faithfully followed np, generally result in perfectly clean boilers in a comparatively short time.— The Locomotive.