Coltman Boiler
Coltman Boiler
Until 2004 this vertical boiler was the one regularly used for providing steam on the site. It was built in 1957 by Coltman & Co. of Loughborough, but began its working life at the West Coker Rope and Twine works near Yeovil, until the company closed.
Although originally intended for fully automatic operation, the Trust members found that manual control was much preferred. It was fuelled and fired up with scrap wood, which is very cheap to acquire. Water was fed in via three pumps; two of them built by J. Weir of Glasgow, and a Mumford, all shown below in the picture. A single one of these pumps fed the boiler as fast as was required, so there was a good safety margin.
Unfortunately the Coltman had to be decommissioned at the end of 2004, leaving the charity with no source of live-steam, until the Marshall boiler was restored. The pumps have been retrieved and these are still in action. Our March 2008 update on the Coltman is that it has been removed from the boiler-house and may return to West Coker at some time. The boiler-house is planned as a workshop area.
