Above 1200 Sq/FT 86's 20HP shop

[bimmer1980]

Good progress. I went back and looked at your 3D model cutaway.

So the door knob fits inside the chamber that you welded up and contains the oil drip and recovery off the door knob?

And the oil mist blows out one end and into the burner chamber?

It appears you have some adjustability built into it as well?

Happy New year!

 

[86turbodsl]

Thanks. Bimmer, you are correct on all counts. I decided not to pull the oil tank today because i am getting ready to head out of town for a funeral, and won't be back in town to burn the boiler until very late tomorrow. so i decided to setup and make a functional test burn. I setup to test the oil flowing over the ball first, and the welds i made are leakproof. Thats a nice feature of TIG, i don't always get leakfree bungs with mig. Also, i confirmed the spark will jump the gap from the electrodes.

With these two completed and out of the way, i applied the air pressure to the ball and got a nice flame about 2 to 2.5 foot long out of the burner with automatic startup. I did find it was blowing a pretty large plume of oil on the floor though. It made a nice mess. This says the oil was not fully atomizing.

I ran a second test with 100psi air pressure and got about a 4 foot flame, with much better atomization.

The flame is too long though. I also found that the little compressor i was using won't keep up at that flow rate. I need to reduce the air pressure to reduce consumption to a reasonable level.

I need to improve atomization a bunch to run lower pressures. Two things control atomization rate:
Fluid temperature and air pressure. If i need lower air pressures, the temp has to go up.

I do think that i lost quite a bit of temperature as i was NOT using a preheat tank supply for the test, i was using oil i'd pulled out of the preheat tank and put in a small plastic cup. The oil pump and lines removed quite a bit of heat from it, as well as flowing over the ball, which is supplied with cold air.

I think a constant preheat source will help a bunch. I also plan to burn into a steel tube with a stainless steel inner preheat tube, which should pretty much glow red and help vaporize the stream as it blows through. Hopefully without plugging with soot.

I took several videos of this testing which i will upload to youtube when i get a minute. I've got about 2 hours or so before we leave for the funeral, so i'm not likely to get it done before late tonight.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

 

[86turbodsl]

So some photos and vids to share.



Clamped the burner to my welding vise.



Put some hot oil into a can.



Hooked up the oil transformer.


And the small air compressor in the first test.

 

[86turbodsl]

Three vids of the first test.

And then increase the pressure to 100psi.

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[bimmer1980]

Thanks for posting the videos! It all makes sense now.

I wonder if the burner tube would help burn off any residual oil....

Regardless, that is progress to be able to light the fire!

 

[86turbodsl]

Thanks! I am going to add the burner tube next. Still thinking about where to bring in the combustion air.

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[Strouty]

The videos do make things understandable, looks like you could toast marshmallows just fine.

 

[bimmer1980]

Do you need more air for combustion besides the air that is blowing and atomizing the oil?

If you need more air, I would think the inward facing louver-style holes would allow the spray of oil and fire to draw the air in as much as it needs... If the opening are facing away from the oil spray, it should not allow oil residue to escape..... (Hopefully...)

 

[86turbodsl]

I would imagine I need some auxiliary air. I'm thinking an away port to draw air but not oil like you mentioned

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[86turbodsl]

TIG welders are frikken awesome. I just tacked tiny little bits of stainless and steel nuts together to make extensions for the oil burner transformer electrodes. Gets rid of the springs and makes a nice solid connection for the wiring.

I'm super pumped all my tig welds were leak free and solid. i'm kinda amazed how well it's been going on that front.

Also picked up a new hydraulic pump for making into another oil transfer pump and 3 275 gallon totes to hold oil and cleanup the yard a little as i fill them.

Tomorrow i'm hoping to clean the shop a bit, and work on the burner a bit. the 2 weeks of warm weather we forecast are moderated a bit to lower temps. i'm a little nervous on future temps as i take the old burner down.

 

[Perrorojo]

TIG welders are frikken awesome. I just tacked tiny little bits of stainless and steel nuts together to make extensions for the oil burner transformer electrodes. Gets rid of the springs and makes a nice solid connection for the wiring.

I'm super pumped all my tig welds were leak free and solid. i'm kinda amazed how well it's been going on that front.

Also picked up a new hydraulic pump for making into another oil transfer pump and 3 275 gallon totes to hold oil and cleanup the yard a little as i fill them.

Tomorrow i'm hoping to clean the shop a bit, and work on the burner a bit. the 2 weeks of warm weather we forecast are moderated a bit to lower temps. i'm a little nervous on future temps as i take the old burner down.

So far, the only thing I'm proficient at is resharpening tungsten electrodes after dipping them in the filler rod.

 

[86turbodsl]

I was having that trouble too. What really helped was the 2.0 cheaters that go in my helmet. That and my bifocals and I can see clearly now and keep the tungsten out of the puddle most of the time.

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[Strouty]

I got a tig welder a few weeks back, haven't touched it yet, I know I need a grinder for the tungsten. Will be interesting to see how it works.

 

[86turbodsl]

I just use a 6in grinding wheel and a portable drill to spin the tungsten. Works well.

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[86turbodsl]

Freshly tacked up burner tube assy.

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[Strouty]

I just use a 6in grinding wheel and a portable drill to spin the tungsten. Works well.

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Do you need a special grinding wheel?

 

[86turbodsl]

I don't use one. It works but makes a groove.

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[Strouty]

Then you have a path to follow. LOL

I need to get started using mine, will be interesting, I learned how to weld using oxy acetylene when I was a teenager. I used to weld floors into cars and trucks a lot. Used to take an old hood and use the sheet metal from it. It was a bit thin, but it was cheaper than buying sheets of steel.

 

[86turbodsl]

If you have gas welding down, you're 90 pct there already. Give it a shot!

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[Perrorojo]

I was having that trouble too. What really helped was the 2.0 cheaters that go in my helmet. That and my bifocals and I can see clearly now and keep the tungsten out of the puddle most of the time.

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I've been taking my glasses off. I need some cheaters.

 

[86turbodsl]

Cheaters weren't enough for me. Needed bifocals and cheaters both. Then the puddle got clear enough to stop dipping tungsten

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[86turbodsl]

I shut the boiler down at dinner and that gave me an opportunity to install the new one and take a look.

The burner tube was tacked to push into the chamber just far enough to drip inside if needed.

Room to the bathroom to spare although I think getting the oil vaporized in 2ft will be a trick.

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[86turbodsl]

Complete teardown of the preheat tank today. Cleaned, sanded, and acetoned for the flanges i need to weld on it.

Pics here

 

[86turbodsl]

And the nearly completed Tig welded tank.


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[Strouty]

Looks great, you are getting me excited to try tip welding!

 

[86turbodsl]

Thank you. You know I thought it would be a lot harder. Im really enjoying it. Burned a half a 330cu ft tank already!

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[Strouty]

That is a lot of gas!

Are you running straight argon or some blend of argon helium? I saw that the blend allows for a hotter weld, just curios, I stock argon for my aluminum welding with the spool gun.

 

[86turbodsl]

Straight argon. Helium is handy when you have a bit less welder than you really need, or you have massively big weldments in aluminum or magnesium that has a high coefficient of heat transfer. Since i have massively big welding power supplies, 300+ amps @ high duty cycle, i don't expect to have to ever use helium. Which is good, because there's a helium shortage and it's SUPER expensive.

 

[86turbodsl]

So I've been working on assembling the revised preheat tank. The dilemma I have has been how to support burner 2.0 testing while still making heat without a huge tearup to get setup to test and then return to the old system quickly. I decided an interim step was required. The tank will move to the permanent location under the burner. The new oil pump will feed either the old burner needle valve with an overflow tee or the new babington ball depending on what tubes are installed. One set for each configuration. So a few bolts pulled and lines installed and I can switch between systems without moving the tank. The heating and fill systems will not change. Just need to be able to move them a bit. Once the burner is operating properly, I will finalize everything.

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[86turbodsl]

An update on the crazy boss situation:

I came to work today, boss came in a couple hours later, said "Hey". I didn't say anything much and went back to work. About an hour later, he corners me and tells me he understands why i was upset, and that he didn't do anything wrong. Well, i expected that, so he swept it under the rug. I'm going to refer to him as the ball-less wonder boy from now on.

 

[Strouty]

Typical ball-less guy.......

Thanks for the info on the helium, makes sense for sure.

The tank looks great, fingers crossed there are no issues like last time.

 

[86turbodsl]

The cold weather is rolling in. I am trying to finish up the preheat tank, think i have all the welding done, and now i need to build a wooden box to go around it to contain the insulation. Moving to rockwool since the foam melts around the temp where i run the tank.

Welded legs on the tank so it can't compress the rockwool.

Cut and welded a pipe ****** to correct the slope angle for the tank/burner so it can set straight.

Lots of lines to run and mount the pump/motor assy.

I might have to take the morning off tomorrow, which co-incides nicely with the bosses' wed morning meeting where he mainly likes to hear himself talk. Every time i get out of that meeting, my coworkers in the group congratulate me with envy on my "power move". Lol.

After all, i can't let the pipes freeze right??? [emoji38]_hitti

 

[86turbodsl]

Looks like I can use most of the old wood box.

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[86turbodsl]

Worked until 11pm last night on the box, and took the morning off this morning to get as far along as i could.

The cold weather has moved in, it was 22F and snowing this morning when i got up. It's supposed to get down to 18F tonight. I had to do something to get heat into the space.



Started with rockwool insulation on the box in a box. I mounted the oil pump and motor on the front of the box. My thought was it would slide around on the floor as needed to support the different burner assemblies. I will add legs to hold it high enough for the burner tube so there's no stress on it. I routed new lines from the box to the pump, and the pump to the burner, and back to the tank. There's a tee on the burner inlet, which theoretically should allow me to pull some through the needle valve and run the burner. I'll have to run the pump as long as i am running the burner, so really no difference than the babington setup.



Then i moved it over to the boiler area and got started plumbing it in. I ran a new pex line from the settling tank to the preheat tank valve and tied it in. Extended the lines for the power and set the box for control down on the floor. I'll permanent mount it later. I started filling the tank, but it was going pretty slow and i had to get to work, so rather than guess i made it all work correctly, i shut it off. I will continue tonight. I should be able to burn some tonight, as long as i don't take too long.



It is a PITA to step over that mess to work in the corner though, i got to say. It was a lot easier to work on it before the tank had to move to the floor. But i didn't originally plan to have a long burner when i set the boiler there, so i'll have to just live with it.

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[Strouty]

So that is the only place the tank can go? I have a few of those things that I just live with too.

 

[86turbodsl]

Yeah, i want the pipe from the overflow for the ball to be very short so i am not dumping a lot of energy into heating oil. so it's pretty much gotta be right under the burner head.

I'll eventually not have to go in that back corner much so it's a non-issue really but ***** while i'm jumping back and forth over it.

 

[Strouty]

Could you elevate the boiler and for it under? I know you would have plumbing nightmares, but sometimes we do things that are crazy to fix something else that is driving us crazy.

 

[86turbodsl]

The boiler weighs like 900lbs. And it stands over 5' tall now. My loader can lift about that much a maximum of 11'. So i could raise it some, but not enough to do any good, and i'd have a pretty substantial framework to hold it up that high too. Not worth it. It'll be fine once the new burner is final installed. The vertical section and tubing in the turk burner will be gone then.

 

[Strouty]

Got it, I only understand things when you speak in pictures.

 

[86turbodsl]

LOL! I'm sorta like that too..... ;P