Read the affected network, not the whole factory
Click a pole that actually covers the stalled machine. The electric-network screen reports only that pole's network, so a healthy power plant on a separate network does not explain an unpowered drill. The Wiki says satisfaction should be full; when it is not, consumers receive proportionally less power and slow down.
Production near its limit is a capacity warning only after you confirm that the generators can receive fuel, water and steam. Low current output can be normal when demand is low: steam engines scale output to the network's current demand. Do not count idle engines as proof of a failure.
| What you observe | First question | Do this before expansion |
|---|---|---|
| Machine shows no electric connection | Does a pole cover it and link back to the generator network? | Bridge the missing pole connection; reopen a pole beside the machine |
| Satisfaction below full | Is generation genuinely limited or is an input missing? | Trace fuel, water and steam before calculating more engines |
| Satisfaction full, engine output low | Is there meaningful demand on this same network? | Treat demand-matched output as normal; inspect the machine's own input/output |
| Production full while satisfaction falls | Are all existing engines supplied and the load sustained? | If yes, calculate additional capacity and matching boilers |
References: Official Factorio Wiki: Electric system · Official Factorio Wiki: Steam engine · Official Factorio Wiki: Power production
Trace one steam chain from source to consumer
Use a single physical path as your diagnostic spine: offshore pump to water connection; fueled boiler to its steam outlet; steam outlet to engine; engine to poles; poles to the affected machine. The boiler has two water connectors on opposite ends and a separate steam output. Rotating a boiler can leave a pipe at the wrong port even when the nearby plumbing looks plausible.
An offshore pump itself needs no electricity or fuel. If the boiler has water but no steam, check its fuel. If fuel and water are present but the engine has no steam, inspect the steam-side connection. If the engine can generate but the consumer is still disconnected, the fault is electrical, not thermal.
- At the shoreline, verify the offshore pump is placed on a valid water edge and its output reaches the boiler's water side.
- Open the boiler and verify both water and combustible fuel are present; look for steam leaving its separate outlet.
- Open the first engine and check that steam arrives. A second engine helps only if this first path already works.
- Check poles from engine to one electric consumer; then reopen that consumer's network panel to see satisfaction and production.
- Change one failed link and observe whether the downstream machine begins receiving the missing resource.
References: Official Factorio Wiki: Offshore pump · Official Factorio Wiki: Boiler · Official Factorio Wiki: Steam engine · Official Factorio Wiki: Electric system
Avoid the electric-inserter restart trap
A boiler fueled only by an electric inserter can stop receiving fuel after a blackout, because the inserter also needs electricity. The Wiki explicitly warns of this self-locking failure and describes a burner inserter as a way to retain a non-electric restart path. This is especially relevant if coal mining, belt feed and boiler fueling are all on the failing grid.
For recovery, inspect the boiler's fuel slot and hand-feed a small amount if it is empty. Then verify water and steam, reconnect a working generator and watch the fuel-inserter feed resume. A burner inserter on a suitable fuel line can help with future restarts, but it does not compensate for an empty coal belt or missing water.
| Symptom after blackout | Likely dependency | Recovery check |
|---|---|---|
| Boiler has water but no fuel | Electric fuel inserter stopped with the grid | Supply fuel manually, then confirm the inserter can feed again |
| Fuel inserter moves but boiler empties later | Fuel belt or mining supply cannot sustain it | Follow coal from patch to belt to inserter pickup |
| Boiler fueled, engine still idle | Water or steam path, not the inserter | Inspect the two fluid sides and the engine's steam input |
References: Official Factorio Wiki: Boiler · Official Factorio Wiki: Power production
Capacity example after the chain is healthy
The cited base-game values are 1.8 MW of boiler fuel input and 900 kW maximum output per steam engine. One boiler can therefore supply two engines at full output. This is a small-plant matching rule, not a required offshore-pump megabase layout; the Wiki's current pump capacity differs from older circulating examples.
Worked arithmetic, not a measured save: suppose a connected network needs 3.6 MW while three supplied steam engines can offer at most 3 × 0.9 = 2.7 MW. The nominal shortfall is 0.9 MW. A fourth engine raises the engine ceiling to 3.6 MW, but four fully loaded engines need two fueled boilers (2 × 1.8 = 3.6 MW). Do not add the fourth engine until its boiler, steam route and pole connection are also present. Leave margin for future loads; exactly meeting a stated demand is not a robust operating target.
| Base-game plant | Nominal engine ceiling | What must also be true |
|---|---|---|
| 1 fueled boiler + 1 engine | 0.9 MW | Water, steam and pole-connected demand exist |
| 1 fueled boiler + 2 engines | 1.8 MW | Both engines receive steam and connect to the same network |
| 2 fueled boilers + 4 engines | 3.6 MW | Both boilers have fuel and water; all four engines can deliver |
References: Official Factorio Wiki: Power production · Official Factorio Wiki: Steam engine · Official Factorio Wiki: Boiler
Confirm the fix and record the remaining limit
Return to the same consumer-side pole after the repair. A valid result is a restored connection, full satisfaction under the current load, and the formerly stalled machine running for the reason you expected. If satisfaction is full but the machine stays idle, inspect its recipe, input and output separately; power may no longer be the blocker.
A brief recovery does not prove sustained capacity. Watch the network after production resumes and record whether coal supply, steam and satisfaction remain stable. Include your installed version and mods if asking others to reproduce a difference from this guide.
Installed version / mods:
Affected machine and consumer-side pole:
Satisfaction / production before repair:
Boiler water / fuel / steam and engine input:
One link changed:
Satisfaction / production after repair and whether fuel stayed available:Before you play
- Open a pole on the affected consumer's network.
- Trace water, boiler fuel, steam, engine and pole connection in order.
- Recover an empty boiler before assuming more engines are needed.
- Use 1 boiler : 2 engines only after verifying the base-game chain and installed values.
- Recheck satisfaction under a sustained load.
Frequently asked questions
Why is my steam engine producing less than 900 kW?
The engine adjusts output to current demand. If satisfaction is full, low output alone need not indicate a fault; inspect network demand and connected consumers.
Will another steam engine fix a brownout?
Only if the existing plant's fuel, water and steam are healthy and the network lacks generator capacity. An extra engine without adequate boiler steam or electrical connection changes nothing.
Can an electric inserter strand my boiler after a blackout?
Yes. The cited boiler reference warns that a fuel inserter needing grid power may stop when generation has already failed. Restore boiler fuel and verify the feed path before relying on automatic restart.
Sources & revision notes
Editorial revision: September 28, 2026. Source notes give the scope of each reference; the revision date is not a gameplay test date. Official documentation describes the publisher's system; community sources can contain errors. Use your installed game's own descriptions when they disagree.
- Official Factorio Wiki: Electric system (Community)
Official Wiki community-maintained electric-network reference checked September 28, 2026; used for pole scope, satisfaction and production interpretation.
- Official Factorio Wiki: Power production (Community)
Official Wiki community-maintained steam-power reference checked September 28, 2026; used for base-game 1.8 MW boiler and 900 kW engine matching.
- Official Factorio Wiki: Boiler (Community)
Official Wiki community-maintained boiler reference checked September 28, 2026; used for fluid ports, fuel and restart-inserter caveat.
- Official Factorio Wiki: Steam engine (Community)
Official Wiki community-maintained engine reference checked September 28, 2026; used for demand-matched output and 900 kW base-game ceiling.
- Official Factorio Wiki: Offshore pump (Community)
Official Wiki community-maintained pump reference checked September 28, 2026; used for no-electricity input and avoiding old fixed pump ratios.
Published September 28, 2026: added a network-first brownout decision path, source-to-consumer checks, electric-inserter restart failure and a labelled capacity calculation. No played or measured uptime result is claimed.
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