Transfering coal into boilers?

[trubshoe]

I have tried using fast inserters and when I put then facing the boiler it does a couple peices of coal and cuts out.

The power is fine and everything!

[NimrodAbsolution⁧⁧98]

It only fills up to a certain amount then maintains that amount
Inserters do this with everything

[<unknown>]

This is to enforce to spread evenly material to every "machine" and prevent the first one to sink all input material and having only one "machine" working.

[Khan Boyzitbig of Mercia]

Inserters maintain five items of fuel in boilers. A fast inserter is kinda useless unless you have multiple lines of boilers feeding off each other.

[mrvilla]

Others have already submitted the answers, but check in the boiler window and you will probably see that it works fine and are consuming coal as normal.

[dimmu1313]

Commenting for further verification. You're good to go. I only use regular inserters because the boiler burns through fuel way slower than an inserter moves. No need to waste a fast inserter. Just set it and forget it.

[Noppius]

I use most of the times a burner inserter for my boilers. Why? Well, the coal/solid fuel is there anyway to fire up the boilers and the inserters don't use a massive amount for themselves.

They work fast enough to keep the boilers filled and when you have a power failure (more power needed then produced), your burner inserters will keep working. All other inserters will suffer from the lack of power, making the power problem even bigger, wich makes them even slower until you're factory comes to a grinding hold.

Just my suggestion

[mrvilla]

Originally posted by Noppius:

I use most of the times a burner inserter for my boilers. Why? Well, the coal/solid fuel is there anyway to fire up the boilers and the inserters don't use a massive amount for themselves.

They work fast enough to keep the boilers filled and when you have a power failure (more power needed then produced), your burner inserters will keep working. All other inserters will suffer from the lack of power, making the power problem even bigger, wich makes them even slower until you're factory comes to a grinding hold.

Just my suggestion :2015coal:

Actually a very good advice! Thanks for the tip!

[AlexMBrennan]

Actually a very good advice!

Well, not really. The scenario (total blackout caused by slowed down inserters) is only theoretically possible but would require you to attach about 100 radars to a single steam engine to slow down the inserter enough for the boiler to run out of power (boiler has 390kW power, coal has 8 MJ so you need 1x coal every 20s). It's not gonna happen unless you go out of your way to overload the grid to an insane degree.

You are far more likely to lose power due to miners slowing down (insufficient power => less coal production => even less power => even less coal)

[Dementio223]

I recomend useing burner inserters, the regular inserters are pointless and the burners fill themselvs. also note that you should only have about 4 steam engins with 4 bolers or it fails.

[TaterShovel]

Originally posted by Dementio223:

I recomend useing burner inserters, the regular inserters are pointless and the burners fill themselvs. also note that you should only have about 4 steam engins with 4 bolers or it fails.

Maximum efficient setup is: one offshore pump -> fourteen boilers -> ten steam engines.

[FMTK_77]

Originally posted by Azraelle:

Originally posted by Dementio223:

I recomend useing burner inserters, the regular inserters are pointless and the burners fill themselvs. also note that you should only have about 4 steam engins with 4 bolers or it fails.

Maximum efficient setup is: one offshore pump -> fourteen boilers -> ten steam engines.

Nope You'll get maxium efficiency with 1 pump -> 13 boilers -> 10 steam engines ... that'S an efficiency of 98,74%. Setting up a 14th boiler for the missing 1.26% is just a waste of resources ;-)
Also burner inserters are the best way to feed boilers.
1. Inserters themselves don't produce pollution, but producing electricity does. If you use electric inserters where they're not needed you raise your pollution without any need.
2. When you run down on electricity, the electric inserters will slow down, less power is produced, they'll slow down more .... chicken-egg-thing ;-)

And as said: The coal is there anyway and you should set up the coal mining -> power production in a way that you have a backlog of coal anyway.

[Scarsick]

Originally posted by FMTK:

Originally posted by Azraelle:

Maximum efficient setup is: one offshore pump -> fourteen boilers -> ten steam engines.

Nope You'll get maxium efficiency with 1 pump -> 13 boilers -> 10 steam engines ... that'S an efficiency of 98,74%. Setting up a 14th boiler for the missing 1.26% is just a waste of resources ;-)

I rather have the extra 1,26%. It's not like you're wasting Alien Science Packs or something... besides, you can't blame the extra boiler if you screw up and run out of coal.