Powerhouse - Boiler Room
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Here we are in the boiler room. There you can see the
number 1, 2, and 3 boilers on the right. (The fourth boiler is off to
the right of the shot).
And here are the number 2, 3, and 4 boilers. And a rather
large gage in the background. C. Demaine notes that the green cabinet
in the background contains some electrical controls that are much more
modern than most of the rest of the plant. He says that it may even contain
a microprocessor, with which I would agree. Unfortunately, I do not have
any more detailed photographs of this cabinet.
The front of the No. 4 boiler. The yellow pipes, are, I
believe, natural gas. These boilers were also able to run on oil stored
in a gigantic tank outside the powerhouse; I don't know which pipes were
used for this, though. C. Demaine says that the yellow pipes do definately
appear to carry fuel of some kind, due to the Maxon safety valves on them
(which are visible in the previous photo, not this one). |
Another closeup of the front of No. 4 boiler.
I guess that's where the fuel goes into the burner.
One can see the complexity of the equipment and conduits necessary
to operate this plant. Also, overhead is the coal conveyor apparatus, used
before the plant was converted to oil/gas operation.
The window-wall of the boiler room provides a lovely view of
Mill D.
There are many instrument panels such as this one on the wall
across from the boilers. This one contains several circular chart recorders,
and three gages that look like they measured a temperature or pressure reading.
Whatever was in those rectangular holes was probably scrapped after the plant
closed, but the chart recorders appear to have been vandalized. C. Demaine
notes that the missing items are the analog controllers that regulated the
boiler airflow, temperature, steam pressure and other such items, based on
sensor readings from those systems. He says that they were probably worth a
few bucks, which would explain their disappearance.
This chart recorder once monitored the temperature of the flue
gasses (those exiting through the smokestack).
This prominent gage appears to have measured the pressure in
the main steam line. Rather impressive.
The sides of the boilers have these access hatches, allowing
one to view the combustion chambers.
The combustion chamber of the No. 1 boiler. The flame most
likely shot out horizontally from the right. That white residue on the back
wall seems to be a product of the combustion of natural gas (if anyone knows
more about this, please enlighten me). The pipes on the left presumably carried
the water to be turned to steam by the flame.
A close-up of the pipes inside the No.1 boiler.
Natural Gas. Boiler Open/Close.
This stairway in the boiler room leads up and up to the third,
fourth and fifth floors of the PowerHouse. The boilers fill most of these floors,
so the fourth and fifth floor consist almost entirely of boiler and a small
catwalk area. The fifth floor contains the smokestacks and smoke handling equipment,
and the coal conveyor. We didn't get past the fourth floor on this trip, so
there are no photos from the upper level, and not a whole lot from the third
and fourth floors.
One interesting item on the third floor is this overhead conduit
that goes to Mill D. The yellow thing is presumably a large steam pipe, some
of the conduits presumably carry electrical wires, and others perhaps carried
process water. I wonder, after the steam in was used in Mill D, whether it
was vented, or whether the condensate was returned to the Powerhouse for re-use
in a boiler... People have gone into the conduit from the Powerhouse to Mill
C, as evidenced by the recent graffiti on the conduit windows, but there is
no evidence of people going into this one, which is probably a good thing,
given its dilapidated condition.
The third floor catwalk provides a nice view of the entire
boiler room.
At the other end of the boiler room, a sign helps you find
your way out of the building.
And you get another nice view of Mill D on your way out.
This concludes the virtual tour of the Powerhouse.
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