Talk:Billycan

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Who can tell me the name of something that is also used to boil water, but has a fire chamber contained within it? You use small twigs, bark, etc. stuffed into the chamber, and the water chamber is actually surrounded by the chimney; the water gets heat not just from the bottom, but the sides as well, and boils quickly. I think this item may have been used in Ireland, or perhaps in Europe.

[edit] Billycan

Device for heating water on open fires... In Australia it's called a "choofer" or "chuffer"- probably because of the sound it makes. Bushmen made these boilers from discarded metal drums (44 gallons or smaller) and connected galvanised pipes to the two holes- standard thread. Cold water is poured into the lower hole near the heat source- say an open fire. As it heats the water rises and is forced out of the higher hole. The only difference is that the heat source is not enclosed. It would seem that settlers from Europe may have improvised this version with available material in ' the colonies'. vicpreece@yahoo.com.au Wollongong Australia. Diagram available...

--Vicpreece 17:48, 30 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Why "billy"?

Can anyone elaborate on why it is called a billy can? Was it named after somebody named William? Paul Turvey