Topic starter
01/02/2009 6:02 pm
Greetings from New Orleans ,
I have it on good authority that the Str. Delta Queen may not be leaving the Crescent City , on the fourth of February , when first thought due to some Fuel/Boiler Issues . It was related to me that on the " Queens " last trip into New Orleans , her fuel system was not changed over to the lighter and thinner # 2 diesel but remained on the thicker Bunker C . The problem with this is that her fuel lines to her boilers still has the thick Bucker C in them and the fuel has now geled in the fuel lines and must some how be heated inorder for the lines to be cleared so that the fuel may get to the boilers inorder for them to be lit off . I am certainly no engineer and it was implied to me that this will be no small task or maintenence issue and this may result in the DQ's late departure . One other issue that is fast approaching is the weather . A strong northerly front is about to blow through and this will create very unfavorable sea conditions for the DQ to cross the open waters of the Mississippi Sound . So between the congested fuel lines and the coming inclimate weather conditions , in all likely hood the DQ will be making a late departure from New Orleans . Time will tell .
Smooth Sailing !
Ted Davisson
02/02/2009 4:22 pm
Steam lines are used to heat the Bunker C. If there is no steam on board, it is likely that they could get steam from on shore. Surely this has been done many times after a layup. Although I endured many layups, I never clued in to that specific procedure.
02/02/2009 4:52 pm
The procedure to bring the cold DQ boilers back on line as explained to me is to start and fire slowly with Number 2 (basically the same as Diesel) fuel oil from the tanks that serve the generators and to utilize compressed air as an atomizer, compressed air coming from an onboard compressor powered by one of the three generators. Fire the boilers this way until low pressure steam is made and feed this low pressure steam to the Number 6/Bunker C tank heaters slowly heating the tanks until the oil is warmed up enough to flow. Continue to fire on Number 2 until steam pressure is high enough to be used as an atomizer. With Number 6 warm enough and steam pressure up enough to use as an atomizer, switch firing to Number 6/Bunker C...and continue to raise pressure until high enough for work.
Now Capt. Ted had a point if the boilers were shut down with Number 6/Bunker C in their fuel feed piping...though the tanks could be theoretically heated with an external source of steam, I don't think the piping feeding the boilers can be heated, and I suspect the piping is insulated and would be a bear to heat by hand. Once Number 6/Bunker C cools down it basically turns into unflowable goo, basically stuck in all the various fuel oil piping serving the two boiler's burners, which I think there are 4 of them, two per boiler. But it also appears they somehow got by this problem. I'd be interested in how...