This section is from the book "American Plumbing Practice", by The Engineering Record. Also available from Amazon: Plumbing: A working manual of American plumbing practice.
The supply of hot and cold water to all parts of the building is controlled entirely from the distribution drums in the cellar, shown in Fig. 5- They are of galvanized steel, about 5 feet long; v is for hot water under tank pressure, and b and c for cold water under tank and street pressure respectively. Tank water is received through the 4-inch pipe n and its 2-inch branch o. Water under street pressure is received through a 2-inch branch q from a 4 inch pipe/ to the suction tank C, Fig. 2. Live or exhaust steam is delivered through a ¾ - inch pipe I to the 2½ - inch pipe a, and, after heating the water in the drum v, escapes through a ½ - inch pipe s.
The pipe A is a hot-water 1-inch supply to two slopsinks, and B is a 1½ - inch supply to all other slopsinks. C and D are 1- inch supply pipes to the president's and directors'rooms. F is a ¾ - inch. and E and G are ½-inch hot-water return-circulation pipes from the tops of the lines B, C, and D, and connect above its valve with the sediment pipe m of the drum v. The pipes H, J, K, and L are 1-inch tank cold-water supplies to different lines of washbasins. M is a 1½- inch supply pipe to a group of washbasins and urinals, N is a 1½ - inch supply pipe to a group of basins, urinals, and slopsinks, and O, P, Q, and R are 1-inch supply pipes to lines of washbasins. S is a 1-inch supply pipe to the directors' room. T is a 1-inch supply pipe to the president's room. U is a1½ inch cold-water supply pipe under street pressure to a basement toilet-room, and V is a 1-inch supply pipe to the same. W is a 1½-inch supply to another basement toilet-room. Y is a 1½ - inch supply pipe to the elevator tank. Z and d are 1-inch supply pipes to the front and rear cellar sinks; j is a 1½ -inch by-pass connecting the drums b and c, the valve (k) of which is usually closed to keep the two systems separate, but may be opened to admit tank water to the drum c if the street water is turned off. The lines of pipe, W and U, are generally supplied by street pressure, the valves w and a being open and the valves x and y closed. By reversing these valves, however, the supply is under tank pressure.
All the rising lines may be emptied through their valves i'i, etc. into the drip pipe g g that discharges into the trap of a 5-inch rainwater leader z. The drums v, b, and c may also be emptied by branches m m m, through the pipe g; 11, etc. are pipe legs supporting the drums; //, etc. are pipe hangers supporting the horizontal lines from the iron floor beams; p is the 4-inch pump delivery pipe to the roof tank.
Figure 6 shows the method of supporting stacks of cast-iron pipes from the iron floor beams by the welded iron strap S, carefully fitted just under the hubs.
Figure 7 shows the special fresh-air inlet at the main sewer trap. Each of the main house sewers C C has a branch A to a double Y connection D at the sidewalk grating, and any dirt or other obstruction can be very readily removed through its cleaning hole at B and another at E in the double Y connection F with the main sewer.
The plumbing in this building was done by Byrne & Tucker, of New York City.
 
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