Bob's Wood Boats

Rhodonna Lee Fishing Boat Rhodonna Lee

The steam launch was designed around the engine, burner, boiler, and condenser. This type of boat was common on the Great Lakes in the early 1920s and is still used in England for weekend outings.

The boiler was built on the order of a Scotch water tube boiler.

The engine is a Stuart Engine with a Stevenson reversing gear from England and the milling of the casting was done in my shop.

The burner generates the heat that creates the steam in the boiler using white gas, commonly used for outdoor camping stoves. The steam then comes out of the boiler through a steam pipe which drops down into the fire again to become super heated. It is much hotter than the steam in the boiler. They call this super heated steam. Because this steam is so hot and dry, oil must be added to the steam before entering the engine. The steam then runs the engine with steam pressure.

The exhaust steam from the engine then enters a keel condenser, taking the steam along the underside of the boat, condensing the steam back to water. When the water re-enters the system there is still a small amount of oil which needs to be removed before returning to the boiler. This is done by a filtering system in the front of the boat. The oil is separated, as oil will float to the top, and the clear water removed from the bottom of the filter through a series of baffles. This clear water then runs down a tube to the feed pump, operated by the engine, and is then pumped back into the boiler, one drop at a time, as it is condensed. This allows no need for makeup water to be added, as the water is recycled. There is one exception, though. People love to hear the sound of the steam whistle and it is impossible to recoup that steam. An old captain once told me: "The steam that blows the whistle doesn't turn the wheel."

The whistle was originally an English Bobbie Whistle, used to direct traffic. It was adapted to be blown by steam and can be heard for several blocks.

Using the system described above, I am able to run the boat up to four hours without bringing it in for refueling.

The boiler was made from a section of large copper tubing and the water coils inside from smaller copper tubing. The unit was covered with wood lagging for insulation. It was hydro-tested at 120 psi with the safety valve being set at 50 psi, producing a very safe to operate unit.

The safety valve is from an air tank off of a semi truck. The stack on the boiler is a piece of plumbing material purchased at a hardware store.

The steamboat is overhauled about every two years to make sure all parts are in good working order so there is no risk of breaking down while it is out on the water.


Back view of engine	Boiler and engine up close	Boiler profile

Boiler Top View	Boiler Top	Boiler tubes

Burner coils	Burner Mount	Burner top view

Cabin Interior	Cabin	Engine Mount

Engine	Filter Setup	Finished hull with condenser

Inside empty hull	overall inside hull	Profile

	Rudder

Logo by Dean Konop of DK Caricatures