Steam Boiler (Railcraft)

The Steam Boiler is a multiblock structure from the mod. This structure is used to turn water and fuels into, for powering engines and other machines that require it.

Steam boilers are composed of two parts, the Boiler and the Firebox. The Boiler is composed of Boiler blocks and is what determines the amount of steam it can produce and hold. The Firebox is composed of Firebox blocks and is what determines the maximum dimensions the multi block may be as well as the type of fuel used to heat the boiler.

A Steam Boiler will need a constant supply of water and fuel(s). Water is considered the more critical resource, because the boiler will still burn its fuel, thereby wasting your resources. Worse still, should a boiler that has run dry be re-supplied water while it is hot, the water will flash into steam and over-pressure the boiler, causing a gigantic explosion. This explosion will destroy nearby blocks and injure or kill players.

Boiler types
There are two types of Steam Boilers, High Pressure and Low Pressure. Both block types will push steam to adjacent blocks, machines, or pipes/conduits which can accept liquid. These include BuildCraft pipes and the Steam Oven. Boilers have a square base, as determined by their Firebox. They may be built in any of the solid (not hollow) configurations: 1x1x1, 2x2x2, 2x3x2, 3x2x3, 3x3x3, or 3x4x3. (Width x Height x Length)

High pressure
High Pressure boilers are composed of High Pressure Boiler Tank blocks. They will take much longer to get to maximum efficiency than Low Pressure, but will produce twice as much steam (20mB/t) when fully warmed up. A 1x1x1 High Pressure Boiler can power a single Commercial Steam Engine safely. High Pressure boilers are recommended for continuous operation where warm-up/cool-down cycles are infrequent.

Low pressure
Low Pressure boilers are composed of Low Pressure Boiler Tank blocks. They are relatively inexpensive compared to their High Pressure counterparts, requiring only iron to fabricate. They produce 10mB/t when fully warmed up. A 1x1x1 Low Pressure Boiler can power a single Hobbyist's Steam Engine safely.

Firebox types
There are two types of Fireboxes, Solid Fueled and Liquid Fueled.

Solid fueled
Solid fueled fireboxes are composed of Solid Fueled Firebox blocks. They consume solid fuels, such as charcoal, coal, coal coke, and other fuel items which do not have a secondary output item (such as lava buckets). Solid fueled fireboxes have the added feature of being able to pull in consumables from adjacent inventories (chests, machines). It is common to use a Steam Oven to feed an adjacent solid fueled boiler, since the boiler will push steam into the steam oven blocks that it touches, and the firebox will pull charcoal from the steam oven blocks that it touches.

Liquid fueled
Liquid fueled fireboxes are composed of Liquid Fueled Firebox blocks. They consume most liquid fuels, and will also consume creosote oil. A coke oven that is burning wood logs as fuel produces enough creosote to continuously fuel a single 1x2x1 Steam Boiler, and two or three 1x2x1 steam boilers if it is burning coal. A coke oven can thus be used to power a combination of solid and liquid fueled boilers for greater fuel efficiency than just the solid fuels alone.

Unlike the solid fueled firebox, the liquid fuels must be piped in.

3x3
To build a boiler, first construct the firebox in a flat square. A 1x1 firebox requires 1 block, a 2x2 firebox requires 4, and a 3x3 firebox requires 9 firebox blocks. The firebox blocks must all be of the same type.

Next, construct the boiler on top of the firebox. The Boiler Tank blocks must be of the same type. They may be built in a solid box of 1x1x1, 2x2x2, 2x3x2, 3x2x3, 3x3x3, or 3x4x3. The boiler's footprint must be the same size as the firebox, so you cannot place a 2x2x2 boiler on top of a 1x1 firebox, nor can you place a 1x1x1 boiler on top of a 2x2 firebox.

Finally, connect the piping. Water and fuels are piped in to the Firebox, while steam is piped out from any side of any Steam Boiler block.