ke steam. There are two ways
in which this excess air gets into the furnace and boiler setting.
First, by a combination of bad regulation of drafts and firing. The
chances are your uptake damper is too wide open. Try closing it a
little. Then, there may be holes in the fire. Keep these covered.
The second way excess air occurs is by leakage through the boiler
setting, through cracks in the brickwork, leaks around the frames
and edges of cleaning doors, and holes around the blow-off pipes.
There are also other places where such air can leak in.

Take a torch or candle and go over the entire surface of your
boiler setting--front, back, sides, and top. Where the flame of the
torch is drawn inward there is an air leak. Plaster up all air
leaks and repair the brickwork around door frames where necessary.
You should go over your boiler for air leaks once a month.

In regard to best methods of firing soft coal, see Technical Paper
No. 80 of the Bureau of Mines, which may be obtained from your
State Fuel Administrator.

Dirty heating surfaces cause low efficiency because they prevent
the heat in the hot gases from getting through into the water.
Therefore, keep the shell and tubes free of soot on one side and
scale on the other. Soot may be removed by the daily use of
blowers, scrapers, and cleaners. The problem of scale and pure feed
water is a big one and should be taken up with proper authorities
on the subject.

There are many things that may be done to increase the efficiency
of the boiler and to save coal. For convenience a number of these
points are grouped in the following list:

WHAT TO DO. | WHY.
|
1. Close up all leaks in the boiler | To prevent waste of heat due to
setting. | excess air admitted.
|
2. Keep shell and tubes free from | To allow the heat to pass easily
soot and scale. | into the water.
|
3. Use grates suited to the fuel | To prevent loss of unburnt coal
to be burned. | through air spaces.
|
4. Fire often, and little at a | To obtain uniform conditions and
time. | better combustion.
|
5. Cover all thin spots and keep | To prevent burning