water softening plants

[spackz]

Hi,

 

I was just after some information on water softening plants, did every shed have one? What did they look like? If you have any photo's of various plants can you post them here or supply any links to pictures.

 

Many Thanks

 

Paul

[Kris]

You would only need the plants where the water was hard. In areas of soft water lime scale was less of or not an issue.

[Kenton]

Even when the water quality was poor most early sheds were not always on mains water supply.

Quite often water was simply pumped out of a local river/steam. In later days, as the requirement for clean water and larger volumes was required the sheds were connected to the mains. As much of this water was pumped up from much lower wells the hardness of the water became more noticle a problem and expensive treatment plants were added. Still not every shed had one, or every stabling point or station based water crane.

[Lady_Ava_Hay]

I think that there were a variety of ways of softening water and it rarely involved a plant at the depot AFAIK.

 

I think the Bulleid tender was sometimes fitted with a small water softener that operated on chemicals and filtration

 

This need to soften was only prevalent in areas where rain water or surface streams previously available to steam locos were being used to pipe water to homes after extensive treatment to make it 'safe'. Mains water should never be used as it is more prone to chemicals than untreated water.

 

It was this constant loss of water supply and the scarcity of good water in certain areas that contributed to the downfall of steam

 

I have a video of Alan Peglar adding large tablets to Flying Scotsman's tender to soften the water he was using to get the loco away from London and across the water troughs before they were lifted on the last steam non stop run to Edinburgh.

 

I do know that Ashford in Kent has appalling water quality ( or it did in the eighties ) and yet this town hosted a large steam engine works and overhaul depot earlier than most of Ashford was built.

 

I think the problem was very localised and when steam was invented, water quality was not a problem. It only became a problem later when the demand for potable water became a lot greater.

[Kris]

I have a feeling that Salisbury SR shed had a softener but the smaller WR/GWR shed did not.