John F. Adams

Winter has but just left us, yet it becomes necessary to think of summer and the ice man. This leads up to the subject of a refrigerator, the one here described being a size and design suitable for family use. The reader need have no hesitation about using this style of construction, as one like. it has been in constant use for over four years and is still in excellent shape for use at least as much longer. The cost for lumber will vary from $6 to $8, and the zinc, shellac and fittings will cost about $2 more; the finished refrigerator being quite equal to any $25 article which can be purchased, and much superior to many.

The chopped cork, used for the packing, is readily obtained for the asking of any fruit dealer handling Malaga grapes, but it would be well to obtain it at once, as the grape season is about over, and as the cork is thrown away it cannot be obtained readily very much longer. About a grape keg full will be required. It is much the best thing which can be used for packing, keeping dry and odorless even after many years of use.

The lumber bill includes the following:

40 sq. ft. spruce sheathing, 1/2 or 3/4 in. thick.

40 " " gum-wood " " " " "

36 ft. 2 x 3 in. spruce, planed all over.

1 piece gum-wood, 36 x 24 x 7/8, glued up.

1 piece oak, 20 x 12 x 3/4 in.

2 " " 19x10x1 in.

Gum-wood for the outside sheathing gives a fine appearance, but costs more than spruce, which may be substituted if desired. In addition will be needed 3 pieces of zinc or galvanized iron 19 x 24 in. Also three pairs brass hinges and three refrigerator door fasteners, the latter being found on sale at large hardware stores.

With these materials at hand, first make two frames of the 2x3 spruce, which after being planed will measure about 1 3/4 x2 1/4 in. Cut four pieces 33 in. long, and four pieces 22 in. long; make halved joints at the ends and nail firmly, the larger dimensions of the stock being vertical. One of these will be for the top and the other for the bottom of the refrigerator. With the spruce sheathing cover the under side of the top frame and top side of the bottom frame, the sheathing being brought flush to the sides of the frame, except on the front, where it covers only 1 in. of the frame, with places cut out for the posts next to be mentioned. The front strips of sheathing are not nailed in place, therefore, until after putting in these posts.

Cut three pieces of the 2 x 3 in. spruce, 36 1/2 in. long, one for each corner and one for the center, as shown in the illustration. Also cut a piece 24 in. long, for the cross piece between the ice and lower chamber on the left. The lower edge of this cross piece should be 24 in. above the lower frame, and the ends are halved into the uprights. Before fastening in place cut a groove 7/8 in. wide, 1/2 in. deep and 12 in. long in the center of the inner surface, beginning at the center post, to receive the end of the oak pieces forming the floor of the ice chamber. The joints should be glued, drying in clamps.

Prepare strips of 3/4 in. stock 1 1/2 in. wide, and firmly screw same to the sheathing at the ends and back of both upper and lower frames. The ends of the inside sheathing are nailed to these strips.

The erecting can now begin by nailing the three posts onto the lower frames, the cross-piece above mentioned being in place; the upper frame is then put on, temporarily holding same at the back by nailing strips to both lower and upper frames.

The inside sheathing is then nailed in place, using wire finish nails and blind nailing as much as possible.

The corners are made as tight as possible. If the joints are glued when matching, less moisture will work into the wood, which is an advantage.

The floor of the ice chamber is next put in place. This is made of an oak board about 19 in. long and 12 wide, the right edge being brought flush against the center partition, leaving a space about 2 in. wide at the left, through which the cold air falls to the chamber below. A slight slant must be given this floor piece towards the inner, center corner, where is located the drip pipe. A hole 1 in. diameter is bored in this corner, centering 2 in. from the right edge and 1 in. from the rear end. This hole should be bored before fastening the board in place, which is done by nailing through the sheathing and the first cross piece. The center partition is then put in. It is of £ in. sheathing, and begins 4 in. from the under side of the top, and continues down to about 6 in. from the bottom, leaving these spaces for the circulation of the air.

Directly under the hole in the ice chamber for the drip pipe in the floor of the lower chamber is bored a 1 in. hole for the drip pipe. In a piece of the 2x 3 in. spruce about 4 in long, bore a 1 in. hole and nail the piece to the under side of the sheathing, boring a hole to meet same in the sheathing put on under the lower frame. See that the holes in sheathing and block are in line and straight, making a firm, tight fit for the pipe. The sheathing on the under side of the lower frame is then put on. To do this, lay the whole frame on the back and begin at the back edge, the first strip of sheathing being put flush with the lower edge. Before fitting on the last two strips begin the packing with the chopped cork. Put in enough to fill the space to a depth of about 6 in., tamp it down with a stick, not too hard, or it will force out the sheathing, but firm enough to prevent spaces being formed by subsequent moving about of the refrigerator. Keep adding the cork and tamping with a stick until all the space is filled, putting on the last strip of sheathing and covering the narrow space then remaining after filling as full as possible with the cork chips.

The two ends are then sheathed in the same way, beginning at the back and placing the first strip at each end bo as to cover the edge of the sheathing on the back. The back sheathing is then put on, laying the work on one end to do this. Should the sheathing show a tendency to bulge out. put in a short piece of the 2 x3 in. spruce and fasten with long screws of small gauge from both inside and out. The top, 24 x 36 in. is then put on, after firmly packing the space with cork, and securely nailing to frames and sheathing.

The front is then finished off by putting strips across the top and bottom, along each side, down the center and on the cross piece, these pieces being the proper width to allow the posts and cross piece to expose a margin of about 3/8 in., and forming a jamb to the doors, serving in part to make them air tight. Strips 3/4 x 1/2 in. are also nicely fitted around the inner edges of the door making a second jamb, and giving tight doors.

Under each corner, legs 4 in. high are screwed. These can be made from pieces of the 2 x 3 in. spruce.

The ice chamber is then lined with zinc or galvanized iron, after nailing to the left edge of the floor a strip of oak 1/2 in. square, which acts as a stop to the water from the melting ice. If the reader is not used to such work a plumber should be employed, who can do all the work in a couple of hours if the pieces have been cut and fitted ready for him. The drip pipe fits over the end of a short piece soldered to the lining of the ice chamber, and can be formed up from a piece of the zinc or galvanized iron. At the lower end, which projects below the under side, a V shaped cone is made having three upright strips soldered to it, which enter the drip pipe and hold the cone in position. This fills with water and acts as a seal to prevent cold air from escaping from the ice chamber.

The doors are made as follows: Frames are made of stock 1 in. thick and 2 in. wide, the corners being mi-tered and then sheathed front and back, the latter being put on last and the space filled with cork as before described. The front sheathing laps over about 3/8 in. all around, and the back sheathing is short 1/2 in. on all sides. All joints should be well made, and the doors a good fit, without being so tight as to bind as they may swell a little from moisture.

In each corner of the large chamber, strips of spruce 3/4 X 1/2 are firmly nailed; the edges of these strips have slots cut in them at suitable places in which rest the ends of the cross pieces holding the shelves. The shelves, if made of wood, should not be much over one-half the depth of the chamber in width, and when in use should have a small air space at the back to give proper circulation. If the whole capacity of the food chambers are needed, then shelves of wire netting or perforated zinc, should be made by fitting the wire or zinc to a frame made of rod iron, painted with allu-minum paint to avoid rusting.

The inside is then given two or three coats of spirit shellac, using only the best grade and allowing each coat to dry thoroughly before applying the next; work the shellac into all joints aud cracks so that there will be no places for moisture to work into the wood. An additional coat of shellac will be needed after the first season's use.

The hinges and fastenings are then fitted. For catches, get the kind with drop handles that work on a cam, which will bind the door tight when closed. Ball bearing castors on the legs make moving about an easy matter, the completed refrigerator being quite heavy. The outside is finished with a natural filler and then shellacked and varnished.

Wood is now seasoned by the use of electric current, the sap being drawn out and borax resin drawn into the pores of the wood in its place by electrolysis.