Chapter 27

After Roy finished, John looked over at Walter and asked “You remember that shit storm we worked on together outside Scranton?”

“The one where the #Steam Drum blew up? Yup, remember it well. It was one of the first conversions in the US, something about heat control as I recall” then his face went blank as he was adding two plus two.

Liam didn’t like the look on Walter’s face when he finally realized what John was suggesting. “Why, what happened” Liam asked.

“The thermal shock from excessive heat cracked open the steam drum. No one but John here had any clue it could even be a possibility.” Looking at John, Walter went on “You never did explain how you knew.”

“While training at *EPRI, I came across a gentleman there who was giving a lecture on converting coal plants to natural gas. I managed to swing a copy of the lecture materials and notes” John answered.

Liam asked “Who was this person?”

“I can’t tell you who, that was part of the deal to get the information. I can tell you he represented a major utility down in South America.”

Liam replied “Are you suggesting that could be a problem here?”

John answered “It’s a possibility, yes.”

“How can we find out if it’s a fact?”

“UT Crack Tip *diffraction survey of the Steam Drum.

Liam turned to Walter “Is this something you can do?”

Walter said “No, we don’t have the expertise nor equipment to do it. I know John here has the ability” Walter said throwing John, and Roy by association, under the proverbial bus in an attempt to get the heat off himself.

Liam turned to John “What about it, can you help us out?”

“Not a problem, but you better set some of those boiler makers to scrubbing it down to make it clean enough for UT. It will be a ten grand flat fee for the service as well, payable to PWI.”

Liam got on the phone calling in the order to do just that. After a few minutes he hung up and looked at John.

“How does 0700 start sound to you?”

John replied “Sounds good. I’ll have two people with me, so if there is any plant safety training we need, please prepare it for three. We have our own PPE and safety gear.”

Liam looked at Roy and said “I’ll expect you there as well.”

John looked at Walter, “If you have a UT shear wave tech, send them along. I can train them while I’m working. They’ll need a 45°, 60°, and 70° wedges with their scope along with couplant gel.”

Walter nodded, “Thanks.”

Roy said “Beth is going to be pissed if we don’t get home soon.”

Taking the hint, Liam and Walter got a table for their lunch as Pixy, Roy, and John paid their bill and went out the door.

John turned to Roy “Where is the nearest safety gear store to here?”

Roy said “We probably have anything you need at the house, what are you looking for?”

“Hard hats, safety harnesses, hi visibility vests, and gloves for Mary and Tess. They will be the two I need tomorrow.”

John turned to Pixy, “Call them and tell them to go get some safety shoes.”

Pixy answered “Their riding boots are rated for safety shoes.”

John nodded. He was also considering how and why she knew such details. “How do you know?”

“Because we never know what’s going to happen with you. Instead of buying two sets of boots, it made more sense that they were dual purpose, especially for Tess. Finding her shoe size outside of the children’s section isn’t easy.”

John just nodded at that. He then asked “Do you know anyone that makes the welder caps around here?”

“Mom makes them during outages.”

“See if she can make one for Mary and Tess. I’m sure they’ll appreciate not getting their hair covered in boiler dust.”

Roy said, “We need to get moving.”

After they got back to the farm, John said “I need to do an equipment check for tomorrow.”

Roy nodded and walked up to his house.

After getting the calibration blocks together, he got out his UT scope and set it up.

Pixy came by watching him work. “Mei is at the doctor. Tess tells me the treatment will be next Friday.”

“Good, the sooner she gets that done, the better off she will be. Be ready to support her when she gets back.”

Pixy frowned “Why’s that?”

“A friend’s wife years back had the same treatment. She was told at the time she wouldn’t have children after it. She was a mental basket case after that. Now they have a passel of children. Obviously, the doctor in that case was wrong. If this doctor is of the same kind, they may tell her the same thing.”

Pixy nodded in understanding “You really want us all pregnant, don’t you?”

John pinched her ass and said “The sooner the better.”

“Why do you want children so fast, John?”

He paused a moment in thought “I have the things I wanted and more. All except some children. I spent years alone doing nothing but working. I’m not getting any younger and I want to be around to teach them. I want them to know their father better than I knew mine before he was taken from us.

“Us?” Pixy pinged on.

“My mom and me. It devastated my mother when he was blown up in a ¤hot tap gone wrong.”

“What’s a hot tap” she asked?

“Bypassing a problem in a pipeline by placing an external pad on it that can both redirect and cut off the flow in the line, usually to replace a segment that is damaged (typically by someone digging where they shouldn’t have).

It requires an area of good condition pipe to weld the pad to. If the wrong area is chosen, the results can kill the personnel in the area of the tap. It’s a dangerous business we are in, which is why our insurance rate for PWI is so high.”

He finished up the equipment check then loaded everything into the Ford. He ran a drop cord to the Ford to charge the scope batteries, then called it a day.

Pixy followed him upstairs. When he stripped for a shower, she joined him.