Boiler Failures - The importance of Boiler Safety
Posted in boiler safety by Boiler Guy on March 5th, 2008 
We found a great site* that had some rather interesting photos of some boiler explosions and their results. None of them are pretty sights, as you can see from this photograph from a 1919 explosion in Mobile, Alabama, but, they do remind us to be careful with our boilers and that means proper maintenance.
According to the National Board of Boiler and Pressure Vessel Inspectors, low water conditions are the cause for 50% of all boiler related accidents. Low water within a boiler means water that falls below a pre-set level recommended by the manufacturer for safe operation. This can result in catastrophic boiler explosions.
Perhaps one of the most important controls found on your boiler is the low water cut-off (LWCO). This device can either use a float or probes to sense the water level within the boiler. When the water level drops below a pre-set level, the LWCO will cause a switch to activate which, in turn, will cause the automatic fuel valves to close. No fuel - no flame - no opportunity for over pressurizing the boiler.
We will take a closer look at LWCOs in future posts. Also, if you have any interesting photos of boiler occurrences (the polite word for explosion) please send them to us along with, what you believe to be, the cause of the failure.
* Wisconsin Boiler Inspector’s Association
http://thewbia.com/index_files/Page2120.htm
