Stainless steel boiler/exchanger?

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SF2900
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Re: Stainless steel boiler/exchanger?

Post by SF2900 »

I know that on Ed Yungling's cab forward, he has been using stainless flues in his carbon steel boiler since it was constructed and has never had any flue-related issues.
rkcarguy
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Re: Stainless steel boiler/exchanger?

Post by rkcarguy »

I'm going to bump this old thread/can of worms. I realize with carbide precipitation the stainless can be weakened due to the welding/brazing/soldering temperature, and having done some research I've seen where the tubes crack at the ends of the welds/joints behind the tube sheet at the firebox. Obviously the tubes could be bought as a thicker wall, but stainless already has crappy heat conductivity so SS tubes seem like a bad...or at least inefficient way to go. So, I want to toss this out there, what about a stainless pipe shell and tube sheets, with copper tubes?
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Trainman4602
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Re: Stainless steel boiler/exchanger?

Post by Trainman4602 »

I have stainless steel flues and I make more steam then I need. You read to much
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rkcarguy
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Re: Stainless steel boiler/exchanger?

Post by rkcarguy »

Where I'm going with this is I have available to me a left over chunk of 10" schedule 10 seamless 304/304L stainless pipe long enough to act as my shell for a "far in the future" 0-6-0 build for my 12" gage RR. The end is dented pretty bad, but I can cut that off and it will yield enough for my boiler still. The book says at 400*F that this is good for 480 PSI which is plenty of safety factor both ways for pressure and temp. I can have my tube sheets laser cut in stainless at work, so I'm thinking I've got to claim this remnant before it goes in the bin.
rkcarguy
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Re: Stainless steel boiler/exchanger?

Post by rkcarguy »

One note, we're on well water so I wouldn't have to worry about chlorine in the water, although tests have found manganese and I'm not sure if this is detrimental or not.
hoppercar
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Re: Stainless steel boiler/exchanger?

Post by hoppercar »

I would recommend against it.....I know a couple people who even have these outdoor wood burning boilers for house heat...that were built out of stainless...even though, these are open systems and don't build pressure,after a few years, they are having trouble with cracks in the welds due to chlorine attack, as mentioned in other posts. you are much better using a low carbon steel, which has been the material of choice for boilers for many years, and even using lsb 8000, or one of many other boiler water treatments available
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Trainman4602
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Re: Stainless steel boiler/exchanger?

Post by Trainman4602 »

Like I said before I have stainless steel flues and I have no trouble Stop reading all those articals
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LIALLEGHENY
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Re: Stainless steel boiler/exchanger?

Post by LIALLEGHENY »

One thing to consider when welding stainless or any of the alloy metals for that matter, if you put to much heat or not enough heat into your welds they are prone to cracking. To much heat can also reduce corrosion resistance. There is a lot more to this, just do a google search of excessive heat input into the weld zone. Many products that are on the market, such as car exhaust systems, the above mentioned stainless boilers, etc that are often welded robotically are prone to failures. This is do to manufactures cranking up the amps/voltage to speed up production.
Trainman is correct, stainless would be OK to use, if welded correctly.

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Bill Shields
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Re: Stainless steel boiler/exchanger?

Post by Bill Shields »

giggle....

it never ceases to amaze me that folks think things are OK to do just because someone has 'gotten away with it'...or written a chapter in a book...or published on the internet...THEREFORE it must be OK to do.
Too many things going on to bother listing them.
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AnthonyDuarte
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Re: Stainless steel boiler/exchanger?

Post by AnthonyDuarte »

While I was in Germany I noticed that the use of stainless steel boilers is now commonplace. Not all stainless is equal. 316L is the material of choice for a boiler.

My understanding is magic to making a lasting stainless boiler is in the proper welding. Maybe someone with experience on welding stainless boilers can chime in. (Freunden aus Deutschland?)
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Greg_Lewis
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Re: Stainless steel boiler/exchanger?

Post by Greg_Lewis »

Bill Shields wrote: Fri Apr 12, 2019 9:08 pm giggle....

it never ceases to amaze me that folks think things are OK to do just because someone has 'gotten away with it'...or written a chapter in a book...or published on the internet...THEREFORE it must be OK to do.
“The problem with quotes on the internet is that it is hard to verify their authenticity.” — Abraham Lincoln
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LIALLEGHENY
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Re: Stainless steel boiler/exchanger?

Post by LIALLEGHENY »

Don't feel comments like this are really necessary when they are being directed at other members;

"giggle....

it never ceases to amaze me that folks think things are OK to do just because someone has 'gotten away with it'...or written a chapter in a book...or published on the internet...THEREFORE it must be OK to do."

Couldn't agree more there is a lot of misinformation on the internet, there is also a lot of factual material published by the manufactures to be found if you take the time to look. Take the time to do the research on what alloys to use, what filler metals to use, proper welding parameters and you will have a good chance of producing a good product. Don't jump right in and think you are going to build a good boiler without doing your homework first!
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