Leeds-The great Gasometer in the sky!

[Phill_dvsn]

Wow. Great replies, info, and links there gents. Thanks! Can you just clear up the bit about the decomisioned holder at Meadow lane for me Geof. You say it was decomisioned in 1971.Is it still one of the ones standing? Or was it dismantled?And if it's the one still standing. It then must have had the guiding frame work removed, but the holder left in situ?Which one is/was the number two holder on this picture plshttp://www.flickr.com/photos/phill_dvsn/4549394952/The left or right?It's a million questions i know, but i'd like to get all this info on to the pics. Lol At the terroism exploits Blackprince, lucky for you it was a great big FAIL.Kaboom             

[Phill_dvsn]

I must admit i'd like to take a closer look at these things. I wonder if a nice letter to Transco might get us up on top of the big one in Armley?I wonder if it would be possible to get on while it's deflated, and then ride it to the top when it goes up again? It would save climbing all those dreadful looking stairs.I have visions of it looking something like Windy Miller herehttp://snipurl.com/vry8pHey presto     

[Johnny39]

geoffb wrote: I worked with the the Gas Holder Maintenance department for about 4 years in my 35 years with North Eastern Gas involved with the purging and decommissioning of many holders. Meadow Lane No2 holder was decommisioned in c1971 this was the largest holder in the NE region holding 5,000,000 Cuft. This was a column guided holder as was Kirkstall holder decomed c 1980Stainburn Square holder situated near where the New BBC studios are, in the end fed solely Quarry Hill Flats. and was demolished roughly the same time as the flats.The Holder at New Wortley is called Spence Lane holder which is still in operation being fed from the Medium pressure grid, the Pressure reduction unit is on the Armley Gyratory with the gas main still running at high level on the roundabout.There is a Historical department within the IGEM which publishes a quarterly magazine called historical Gas Times Hi Geoff - I wonder if you can confirm or deny for me that Gas from the Sahara was ever pumped directly to Leeds, or if I was having my leg pulled by the bloke who told me it was?    

[geoffb]

Phill_dvsn wrote: Wow. Great replies, info, and links there gents. Thanks! Can you just clear up the bit about the decomisioned holder at Meadow lane for me Geof. You say it was decomisioned in 1971.Is it still one of the ones standing? Or was it dismantled?And if it's the one still standing. It then must have had the guiding frame work removed, but the holder left in situ?Which one is/was the number two holder on this picture plshttp://www.flickr.com/photos/phill_dvsn/4549394952/The left or right?It's a million questions i know, but i'd like to get all this info on to the pics. Lol At the terroism exploits Blackprince, lucky for you it was a great big FAIL.Kaboom              The holder decom,d in 1970s would be where the Transco Offices are on Kidacre Street. One reason for the taking out of service was that it was losing about a million gallons of water a week. This holder was over 100 years old and due to the below ground water tanks movement, it had been leaking for yonks. Now all this leakage would have ended up in the water table and must have ended up in the well that fed Tetleys brewery, they reckoned that the ale never tasted the same after. One of the old remedies for stopping the water leakage was to put spent hops from Tetleys into the water tank, as the water level fell the hops would find the crack and seal it. The spiral guided holders at Meadow Lane Nos 3&4 were built more recently, probably early 1960s.If you search on Gasworks on Leodis there is a picture of No2 Holder in its pomp.

[geoffb]

Johnny39 wrote: geoffb wrote: I worked with the the Gas Holder Maintenance department for about 4 years in my 35 years with North Eastern Gas involved with the purging and decommissioning of many holders. Meadow Lane No2 holder was decommisioned in c1971 this was the largest holder in the NE region holding 5,000,000 Cuft. This was a column guided holder as was Kirkstall holder decomed c 1980Stainburn Square holder situated near where the New BBC studios are, in the end fed solely Quarry Hill Flats. and was demolished roughly the same time as the flats.The Holder at New Wortley is called Spence Lane holder which is still in operation being fed from the Medium pressure grid, the Pressure reduction unit is on the Armley Gyratory with the gas main still running at high level on the roundabout.There is a Historical department within the IGEM which publishes a quarterly magazine called historical Gas Times Hi Geoff - I wonder if you can confirm or deny for me that Gas from the Sahara was ever pumped directly to Leeds, or if I was having my leg pulled by the bloke who told me it was?     Johnny, you are correct.Liquified Methane Gas was brought from Algeria on a tanker called the Methane Princess and delivered to Canvey Island in the Thames Estuary. It was then re gasified and piped throughout the country to Gasworks, where it was used as a feedstock for the Reforming plants. In this region the works were at Meadow Lane. The gas was then reformed into towns gas and then distibuted throughout the grid. This was in the early 1960s.This type of gas production was developed by ICI, the works at Meadow Lane were built in the early 1960s and finished when we were all converted to Natural Gas in c1974

[Johnny39]

geoffb wrote: Johnny39 wrote: geoffb wrote: I worked with the the Gas Holder Maintenance department for about 4 years in my 35 years with North Eastern Gas involved with the purging and decommissioning of many holders. Meadow Lane No2 holder was decommisioned in c1971 this was the largest holder in the NE region holding 5,000,000 Cuft. This was a column guided holder as was Kirkstall holder decomed c 1980Stainburn Square holder situated near where the New BBC studios are, in the end fed solely Quarry Hill Flats. and was demolished roughly the same time as the flats.The Holder at New Wortley is called Spence Lane holder which is still in operation being fed from the Medium pressure grid, the Pressure reduction unit is on the Armley Gyratory with the gas main still running at high level on the roundabout.There is a Historical department within the IGEM which publishes a quarterly magazine called historical Gas Times Hi Geoff - I wonder if you can confirm or deny for me that Gas from the Sahara was ever pumped directly to Leeds, or if I was having my leg pulled by the bloke who told me it was?     Johnny, you are correct.Liquified Methane Gas was brought from Algeria on a tanker called the Methane Princess and delivered to Canvey Island in the Thames Estuary. It was then re gasified and piped throughout the country to Gasworks, where it was used as a feedstock for the Reforming plants. In this region the works were at Meadow Lane. The gas was then reformed into towns gas and then distibuted throughout the grid. This was in the early 1960s.This type of gas production was developed by ICI, the works at Meadow Lane were built in the early 1960s and finished when we were all converted to Natural Gas in c1974Thanks for that info Geoff. You've solved a problem of many years standing for me. When he told me "pumped", I was under the impression it came in pipes all the way from Timbucto or wherever finally ending up in Leeds, never thought about ships! Once again many thanks.

[Brandy]

Good stuff phil mate.these things have intrigued me from the first time i ever clapped eyes on them!I remember as a kid when my old man first tried to explain the concept of them moving up and down,completely baffled me it did lol.

[tilly]

Hi phill just to say the gas holders on Pottery Fields are not on the former gas works site that is futher down when i lived close to this site there was nothing but houses at the side of it. There were gas holders on the Meadow Lane Gas Works site but they were taken down in the mid sixtys i was contracting at Meadow Lane GasWorks at that time and saw them taken down.The inside of the gas holders were suported at the bottom by tons of timber i think it could have been oak i dont think it would have been of any futher use because the timber was impregnated with gas liquor.    

[electricaldave]

You may find this very interesting reading,http://www.johnhearfield.com/Gas/Gas_strike.htm

[tilly]

electricaldave wrote: You may find this very interesting reading,http://www.johnhearfield.com/Gas/Gas_strike.htm Hi electricaldave what a good read and something i knew nothing about many thanks.