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Boiler for Marcher engine

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MJM460:
Hi Maxis,

I have been following from the start and am glad that you now have a boiler to run it on steam.  It will be a wonderful power plant for the boat you have built, which I seem to remember that you showed in your very early posts.

Just to contribute a second point of view, I also have a gas fired three inch horizontal centreflue boiler and would recommend that you do place a layer of cork or other insulating material under the wooden strips.

It is not that the wood needs additional protection, so much as the heat loss is still significant with only one layer of wood.  I suspect that a second layer of wood would even do if you prefer it.  I did some experiments in my Thermodynamics thread if you want more detail.  It will also help keep the inside of the boat a bit cooler, which never hurts when you have a radio installation nearby.

The main disadvantage of making the decision at this stage is that the extra insulation makes access to filler plugs and other fittings more difficult, but just do your best around the fittings so you can tighten things up.  You will also need longer bands to hold the wood in place than if you leave off the extra layer.

MJM460

Moxis:
Thanks John and MJM460. Good point that additional thermal insulation might help to keep the inside of the boat cooler. And a thin layer of cork under the wooden strips would be a nice option too. I think i will follow that. Now i only have to find cork which is thin enough. What thickness have you used?

MJM460:
Hi Maxis, I found sheets of 3 mm thick cork in a $2 shop, they were A4 size.  More than $2, that is inflation for you, but not expensive that I can remember.

I actually fitted two cork layers under the wood, but I think on balance the extra layer was more problem than it was worth, though probably worth doing if you are making a new boiler so you can make extended bushes and other fittings.  Possibly also better to specifically plan locations of bushes etc to minimise the fiddle little gaps.

MJM460

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