We welcomed Jon from G Bird Industrial Boilers to Steamworks today.
Once kitted up in his protective gear he started to clean the area around the side bushes preparing them for welding.
The steel plugs were then popped into the bushes having first checked they did not extend into the water space.
The welding gear was then put to use to seal the plugs into the bushes,
leaving these lovely welds which nobody will see when the side tanks are put back in place, after firstly replacing the lagging and cladding. But on the positive side, this means that future annual inspections will not require the removal of the side tanks and cab.
With Jon having completed his work by late morning we decided to take an early lunch then reconvene for the afternoon to work on the bushes in the fire box which are for the fusible plugs.
The weather brightened up for a short while making the outside work a bit more bearable, Stuart put his compressor and air tools to work making the job a bit easier. After a couple of hours up in the fire box, Stuart was pleased to report that the bushes threads had been cleaned and that both the plugs had been fitted which means we are ready to start filling the boiler in preparation for the hydraulic test.