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c/boilermakers

7

anthony_jackson31•3d ago

Beveling plates by hand used to take me forever...

For the first 5 years I was in the trade, I'd spend 30 minutes per joint beveling with a grinder. Last month I finally got a portable beveling machine and cut that down to 8 minutes per joint. Anybody else take way too long to switch to a better tool?

7

ward.diana•3d ago

That time I spent 2 years grinding welds the wrong way at the Mobil plant in Joliet

I used to always grind perpendicular to the bead because my first foreman told me it looked cleaner. Then a QC guy from Chicago Boilermakers Local 1 pulled me aside and showed me how grinding parallel actually blends the HAZ better and reduces stress risers. He pointed to a cracked repair on a drum that had been ground the way I was doing it. Has anyone else had a basic habit that turned out to be totally backwards?

8

lisab32•4d ago

Finally got that flange gap right on my third try at the Marathon Petroleum job

I kept seeing guys leaving a 1/4 inch gap between the flange face and the pipe end on those 6 inch lines in Gary. That's way too much for a raised face flange, you want maybe 1/16 inch max so the gasket doesn't blow out under pressure. I checked with my foreman and he confirmed it after I showed him the manufacturer spec sheet. Has anyone else noticed this being a common mistake on refinery turnarounds?

11

the_cameron•4d ago

Took me 3 months to figure out this simple layout trick for big plates

I was in Houston last spring working on a 2 inch thick pressure vessel head. Kept making small layout errors that cost me a lot of time grinding. Then a old timer named Dave walked over and showed me how to use a soapstone block and a straightedge together to scribe clean arcs instead of fumbling with a center punch. Tried it the next day and saved about an hour on each layout. Now I prep all my big plate cuts that way. Anyone else have a trick they learned from a older hand on the job?

24

caseywalker•5d ago

Heard a foreman say stick welding is dead and flux-core is the future, got me wondering

Was standing near a job in Houston last month and this old-timer argued stick is still faster for outdoor fits, but the young guy on the crew swore dual-shield flux-core saves him an hour per joint on girth welds, which side do you lean on for heavy wall pipe?

11

tessalane•9d ago

Just realized I spent 4 hours chasing a boiler leak that was just a loose drain valve

Could have fixed it in 10 minutes if I checked the obvious spots first. Anyone else waste a whole shift on something that stupid?

22

lee.cora•11d ago

Caught myself still using a soapstone on carbon steel last week

Been doing tube welding for 15 years and I finally switched to a carbide scribe about 6 months ago after a buddy in Gary showed me his setup. Anyone else stick with old habits longer than they should?

18

margaret551•12d ago

My oxy-acetylene torch decided to quit mid-cut on a 2-inch plate

Was working a job over in Gary last Tuesday on a big boiler retube. Got about halfway through cutting a 2-inch thick tube sheet when my torch just sputtered and died. The cutting tip was glowing but no oxygen pressure. Turned out the regulator O-ring had blown out completely. Had to call my buddy to bring a spare regulator from his truck 45 minutes away. Wasted almost 2 hours of billable time on a part that costs like 3 bucks. Now I always carry a spare O-ring kit in my bag. Anyone else had a small cheap part ruin a whole day?

27

oliver_baker49•15d ago

That week on the Delaware River bridge job back in 07 still sticks with me

We were swapping out 40 year old riveted sections in 95 degree heat and every single bolt hole lined up perfect on the first try for three straight days. Has anyone else had a stretch of work where the stars just align like that?

3

sam_cooper•18d ago

Best week I've had on a job site in years

Last month I was on a shutdown at a chemical plant in Baton Rouge. We had to replace a 12-foot section of 2-inch schedule 80 pipe that was corroded near a reactor. Everything went smooth - the welds passed X-ray on the first try and we finished two days ahead of schedule. Has anyone else had a job where everything just clicked like that?

-1

coleman.hannah•19d ago

Talked to a veteran boilermaker at the union hall Tuesday that made me rethink how I approach tube rolling

I was standing by the coffee pot complaining about a tight bundle I couldn't get the expander into, and this old timer just said 'son, you ain't working the tube, you're fighting the tool.' He showed me a different sequence for tightening the mandrel that cut my time by half. Has anyone else gotten advice that made you realize you were overcomplicating a basic step?

9

mitchell.thomas•19d ago

That welding shop in Gary taught me to never trust a used argon tank again

I picked up a used argon tank from a guy on Facebook Marketplace last month, figured it was a steal at $50. Took it to a job site down in Gary, Indiana, hooked it up to my Miller 252 and the weld puddle started doing this weird bubbling thing right away. Spent like two hours checking my leads, my ground, even swapped out the liner before it hit me to sniff the gas. That tank was filled with oxygen, not argon, and I felt like a total idiot (just glad it didn't blow up or something). The foreman walked over and said 'you smell that? that's your paycheck evaporating' and honestly that stung worse than the wasted time. Has anyone else gotten burned by a bad gas deal or am I the only one who skips the gas supplier sometimes?

2

parker_hall5•20d ago

Learned a weld test trick at the Local 374 hall in Gary

Went in for a bend test last month and the instructor showed me how to read the puddle better by turning my hood angle down. I had been fighting root pass for three years and that one tip cleaned it up. He said most guys rush the arc and don't watch it burn in. Anyone else pick up a small trick that fixed a big problem?

23

the_daniel•20d ago

Hot take: you don't need to grind every weld flush on pressure vessels

I keep seeing guys spend an hour grinding down welds that are perfectly code-compliant. My old foreman at the Shell refinery in Houston showed me that ASME Section VIII only requires a smooth blend if it's over 1/16 inch. We did a leak test on a 300-psi vessel last month where we left the caps on and passed no problem. Saves a ton of disk wear and arm fatigue. Am I missing something or are we just chasing looks?

0

ray_burns•23d ago

Took me 5 years to figure out I was wrapping my insulation too tight

I used to pull my insulation wrap super tight around every pipe joint thinking that was the right way to do it. Then an old timer on a job in Detroit pointed out that I was actually creating air gaps and reducing the efficiency. He showed me how a little bit of loose wrap lets the material settle and seal better. Have any of you guys been taught a basic thing years into the trade that made you feel dumb?

7

faith27•23d ago

Burned up a $400 torch tip because I was in a hurry on a job in Gary last month

I was working on a 6-inch steam drum patch up near the old US Steel yard. Rushed the preheat and didn't let the tip cool between passes. That thing started sputtering and then just died. Cost me half a day driving to the supply house and $400 out of pocket. Ever make a dumb mistake that cost you real money on a job?

30

ward.diana•24d ago

Hot take: I actually prefer 7018 rods over 6010 for most field work now

I know everyone says 6010 is the go to for dirty rusty pipe and that's what I used for years. But about 4 months ago on a job in Gary Indiana I got stuck with a whole box of 7018 and had to make it work on some real beat up steel. I tried running it a little hotter than usual around 130 amps and it actually tied in better than I expected. The slag came off cleaner and I didn't have to grind near as much. Now I grab 7018 first unless I'm dealing with thick scale or really heavy rust. Has anyone else tried this or am I just getting lucky with my prep work?

27

tessap97•24d ago

Hot take: I was dead wrong about digital welding helmets

Back in 2010 I swore I'd never use a battery powered hood. Old timers at the Local 374 hall said it was just another thing to break. Then I borrowed a Jackson NexGen at a Union job in Peoria and my neck pain went away after a week. Has anyone else had a change of heart about something they hated for years?

5

nancyramirez•26d ago

Can we talk about those firebox door hinges that always sag...

I had to rehang a boiler door on a 40-year-old Cleaver-Brooks last week and the hinge pins were so bent they barely slid out. Why don't more guys just replace the pins instead of shimming the whole assembly with washers?

23

cora813•26d ago

Old apprentice trick I nearly forgot until last month saved my back

I was working a job at a refinery in Gary, Indiana last month and my helper kept asking why I was squatting down so much. 3 years ago my old journeyman taught me to keep my spine straight and use my legs for every bend, even when the pipe is light. Last week I caught myself hunching over a 2 inch flange and my lower back reminded me all day why that's a bad idea. The helper laughed at me for wrapping my arms around my knees to get low but I wasn't sore the next morning and he was. I mean it's just little stuff like that which adds up over 20 years in the trade. Has anyone else had some old-timer tip come back to them out of nowhere on a job?

2

williams.luna•26d ago

Nicked a steam line this morning and my whole day went sideways

Was taking out a section of old 4-inch pipe near a drum and my bevel grinder caught the edge of a live line. Had to shut down half the plant for 3 hours while we patched it up. Anyone else ever get caught by hidden lines when you think you've got the layout mapped?

4

shane_wilson•27d ago

The old boilermaker who kept a stump grinder bit in his locker for 15 years

I was working a shutdown at a paper mill outside of Savannah a few years back, and this older boilermaker named Chuck had a beat up stump grinder bit sitting in his locker. Not a tool you'd ever need on a boiler, right? I asked him why he kept it and he said "you never know when you'll have to grind something down to nothing." I laughed it off until we got a tube sheet that was warped bad. He pulled that bit out, rigged it to a die grinder, and smoothed out a 4 inch section in like 10 minutes. The foreman was standing there with his mouth open. Has anyone else run into a guy with some random tool stash that saved the day out of nowhere?

2

paige_bell81•28d ago

Old timer told me my preheat on a 2-inch plate was way too low

He said I was gonna crack the weld running at 150 degrees on a cold morning in Chicago. Switched to 250 and sure enough, the bead laid way smoother and no cracking after hydro test. Has anyone else had an old-timer save them from a rookie mistake like that?

10

adam186•1mo ago

Old foreman told me to quit using my grinder for everything, took me 3 months to get it

I was out on a job in Gary last month, cutting down some rusty bolts with my 4.5 inch grinder like always. This old foreman named Hank walks over and says, "You're making more work for yourself, grab a chisel and a hammer." I laughed it off but after 3 months of trying his way, I shaved 20 minutes off each flange prep. Anyone else ever get advice from an old timer that felt wrong but turned out right?

7

the_laura•1mo ago

The difference between a 6010 root pass and a 7018 fill rod is night and day since I switched 3 years ago.

I always fought with slag inclusion until a foreman outside Pittsburgh showed me how to run the 6010 hot and fast. Anyone else see a huge change when they stopped babying their root pass?