Minnesota Boiler License Practice Exam

On boilers with more than how many square feet of heating surface are two safety valves required?

1. 10 sq ft

2. 100 sq ft

3. 500 sq ft

4. 1000 sq ft

The correct answer is: 500 sq ft

In Minnesota, regulations dictate that boilers with a heating surface exceeding 500 square feet are required to have two safety valves. This regulation is designed to ensure safety and reliability in boiler operations. The purpose of having multiple safety valves is to provide redundancy; if one valve were to fail, the second one can still function to relieve pressure, mitigating the risk of dangerous situations such as explosions due to overpressure. When the heating surface exceeds this threshold, the risk associated with the operation of the boiler increases, thereby necessitating additional safety measures to protect both the machinery and personnel. This specific requirement underscores the importance of having adequate safety systems in place for larger boilers to maintain operational safety standards. Other thresholds, such as 10, 100, or 1000 square feet, do not meet the same specific regulatory requirement for two safety valves, reinforcing that the requirement applies distinctly to those boilers that have a heating surface greater than 500 square feet.