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CALUMET — A report on the probable causes of the failure of a steam boiler in the Calumet Theatre was discussed at the regular meeting of the Village Council on Tues. The findings listed in the report were refuted by Calumet Theatre Board President, Dan Jamison, who was present at the meeting.
The report, sent from U.P. Engineers & Architects, stated that a technician from Tweet/Garot Mechanical, Inc. headquartered in De Pere, WI, concluded on Tues. that the cause of the boiler failure can only be surmised, but the consensus of two separate mechanical contractors is that the fire that destroyed the boiler was due to a lack of water in the boiler. A low water cut-off switch should have prevented the boiler from being able to fire, the report stated, but this device likely also failed. The boiler was most likely firing for some time with no water, which caused the various components to catch fire.
“The only thing that we can do, if we want to put a boiler in there,” said Village manager Amber Goodman, “is to order one, but the village doesn’t have that built into the budget.”
When the boiler failed, the heating system was replaced with forced-air heat, purchased with the insurance collected as a result of its failure. Because hot air is not a viable option for heating a theatre, the system needs to be replaced again with steam heat.
The report also stated that before performing a thorough inspection of the boiler, it was decided to put some water into it to determined if it leaked.
“Unfortunately,” the report stated, “water started leaking almost immediately and with no pressure on the system.”
Jamison, at the Aug. 8 Calumet Theatre Board meeting, had told the board that the boiler had been installed in 2014 and worked very efficiently until the point that it backfired, because the theatre was operating two boilers into one chimney, the system lacked a vent, and there was no makeup air system. The Tweet/Garot report did not change his mind.
The analysis, he told the Village Council, has some gaps in it.
“First of all, it’s been dry for a year,” he said, “and what seals the units together is a piece of rope — as antiquated as that seems — you have to let it soak for a couple days before you put any pressure on it. Of course, it’s going to leak.”
The second part, he said it dry-fired because there was no water, Jay (Maki) had just filled it two days before it failed, and what would happen in the event of low or no water is the crown sheet failing.
“In other words, the top of the boiler would have melted in,” he said, “and you would have had a small steam explosion. That’s not what happened.”
Jamison said there was a backfire of regular gas firing that melted off the front of the boiler, which was the source of the smoke. The flame, he said, came out through the fire box, not through the boiler.
According to the tax records of the Calumet Theatre Co., Jamison told the council, that company purchased the boiler in 2014, for $19,950. Currently, the Theatre Co. has approximately $37,000 raised to replace the failed boiler.
“When I was calling around to Weil-McClain (the boiler manufacturer) to find out what they could do,” Jamison said, “their suggestion was ‘let’s send somebody up from the company to survey the entire system and give us a package of what we need to do and restore, and maybe recommend somebody.'”
Jamison said that the company representative told him he could not find anyone with steam-system experience north of Milwaukee.
Village President Rob Tarvis asked Jamison if he would be willing to work with Weil-McClain in moving forward. Jamison replied that he was willing, but wanted to make sure he did not do to the village what was done last time.
“I would sit with the guys from U.P. Engineers & Architects and have them act as your engineering manager,” said Jamison, “because the Park Service is paying for that,” adding that he would also discuss other issues he thinks need to be addressed.
The motion was made to authorize Jamison to move forward with UPEA personnel toward installing a new boiler. The motion was unanimously approved.
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