Valve removal and Boiler cleaning, Feb 2007:

Some success with the boiler ... managed to remove both the filler plug and valve from the boiler. Odilon suggested immersing the boiler in a bowel of Coca Cola (not the diet stuff, the full monty was required for this job). The boiler was left over night to let the Cola work it's magic ... and the magic worked indeed. I did have to take some pilars to the valve (covered with a cloth to prevent any scratching). I also tried the trick of very gently trying to tighten the valve first, then turning the nut the opposite way to remove the valve. It worked ... and out she came. The valve looked ok but at the bottom of the stem was a mass of something ... just didn't know what it was.

Cleaning the inside of the boiler was next on the list ... malt vinegar was added to the boiler, valve and filler plug screwed back in and the whole thing was left for another night. What came out was a mucky greenish brown colour full of bits ... certainly wouldn't put that onto my chips! The mass at the end of the stem turned out to be the remains of a spring, which was removed leaving a nice, clean valve (see photo). A new spring, about 20mm long, was taken from a ball point pen and fitted to the valve. Just the job.

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