tarboat's photos with the keyword: HEW2054

Safety valve weights hold down the lagging covers on the boiler backs at the Claymills Pumping Station.

I always find watching a beam engine in action to be a very emotional experience. Yesterday I was able to see two working side by side. Claymills pumping station, Burton-on-Trent. 'C' Engine: Two cylinder condensing Woolf compound rotative beam engine built by Gimsons of Leicester in 1885. Driving two ram pumps and capable of pumping about 3 million gallons of sewage per day through a head of 110ft.

In business for the first time in preservation was the No.4 boiler at the Claymills pumping station. This Lancashire boiler, complete with automatic stoker, proved to be a rather better steamer than No.5 (beyond) which is close to the end of its 10 year ticket. This caused some embarassment for the boilerman as the safety valve lifted and filled the house with steam for a while.