TIPS & TECHNIQUES

ENGINE TERMINAL

    We have all built some sort of engine terminal on our garden

layouts.  In most cases it is a small engine house, a water tower and

maybe a coaling facility.   There are some other items that can be added to

this scene to make it more believable.

     Steam locomotives of any size required a great deal of

maintenance.  The small engine house is perfect, since most steam loco

repairs required that the locomotive be in out of the weather and

protected.   Diesels also use engine houses, but most 1st generation diesel facilities

occupy buildings that were originally used for their steam predecessors.

      The most common fuel for steam locomotives was coal.  Moving coal

to the tender required some sort of structure above the tracks that used

gravity to load coal into the tender.  This structure was called a

tipple, and was constructed of wood or reinforced concrete.  A spur was

run behind the tipple, and hopper cars filled with coal were unloaded

and the coal hoisted to the top of the tipple using some sort of conveyor.

      Oil burning locomotives required a tank to store fuel, a pump

house, and standpipe to pump fuel into the tender.  In the early days,

this fuel was "Bunker C" which sometimes required heating to get it to

flow properly, especially in cold weather.  More modern refined fuels did

not require this extra heating step.  As a result, your engine facility may

require one or both of these fueling areas depending upon the type of steamer

you are running on your railroad.

       Another "must" for steam locos is the use of sand.  One of the

domes on your steam loco contained sand for driver traction when

required.  This sand had to be dry to allow it to flow freely.  Sand

facilities had equipment to dry the sand before it was conveyed to a

hopper above the tracks for loading into locomotives.  Sand bins were

sometimes a part of the coal tipple, and sometimes they stood alone.

They were either supplied with sand by hopper, or via truck.

       Water of course is an essential for steam locomotive operation.

Before heading out for a road assignment. the were fueled, sanded, and

finally filled with water.   This requires that you provide a water

tower or standpipe and pump house.

     

Steam locomotives required a great deal of lubrication.  55

gallon drums on stands with spigots were always found around the engine

terminal.  In large facilities, a building often was used to store

lubricating materials.

       One item not included in many layouts is an ash pit for your

steam locos.  When a coal fired steam locomotive was brought in after a run, the

fire was actually dropped before the loco went into the engine house.

This pit was below the track and had to be emptied periodically when it

started to fill up.  A lot of times this ash was used to pave yard areas

and the parking lot in an engine facility.

        As I mentioned earlier in this article, diesel facilities were

often steam locomotive facilities converted to a new use.  During the

transition period, diesel and steam locomotives shared the same

facilities.  As a result, you often see photos of diesels running past

coal tipples as the exit the yard.  Diesels would often use the same

sand facilities that the steam locomotives used.

        Diesel fueling is done with hoses connected to standpipes.  A

pump house would be required to pump the fuel to the standpipe  While

some railroads built tanks to store their diesel fuel, some used tank

cars on a nearby siding for fuel storage.  Diesels also require sand,

and in many cases the same sanding facilities are used that were built

for steam locomotives.  Diesels use water for cooling, but this was

often provided by a hose.  Diesels also require lubricants and engine

oil, so a storage building will be needed.

        Other items included in the engine terminal would be equipment

for fire fighting.  This can represented by small shacks painted red

which usually contained hoses connected to a centralized water pumping

system.  There would also be many fire extinguishers located around the

engine facility.  Buildings would be needed to store materials such as

paint, waste for cleaning, drinking water, etc.   A wash rack was often

found in the terminal to wash the locomotives down after a run.  This

was especially true of passenger locomotives.

        Finally, there needs to be buildings to house the shops where

machine tools and parts were kept, along with a yard office.  If you

don't have a building for this purpose, an old boxcar with windows and

doors added will work.

        All of these items have the ability to add detail and interest to your

locomotive facilities.  Look at some pictures of the real things to get a

better idea of what these structures looked like and where they could be

placed in your yard area.  Many of these items are available from Piko or Pola,

but many can be easily scratch-built if you are so inclined.