As the disorders of exterior woodwork generally proceed from decay, it is hardly possible to take too great precautions against exposing timber of any sort to alternations of dryness and moisture. If to these are added a close atmosphere, such as exists under the boards of a floor, decay may proceed so rapidly as to destroy new timbers in a few months. The best prophylactic, as the doctors say, against decay is a good circulation of air; and to keep piazza and porch floors from rotting, not only should rain-water from conductors be carried to a distance, but the floor boards should be laid a quarter of an inch apart, and the outside should be finished with lattice work, so that air can at all times circulate freely about them. If this is done, the inevitable surface wetting of the floor by rain will do no injury, as the water does not soak in far, and soon evaporates.

The sagging of blinds, which is extremely common, but always gives a slatternly, dilapidated look to a house, is due, not to decay, but to shrinkage, which causes the wooden pin driven through the corners of the frame of the blind to become loose; and as the friction of this pin is, ordinarily, the only thing that keeps the corners rigid, there is nothing to prevent them, when the pin shrinks, from assuming other angles, as gravity may dictate. After the distortion has become so serious that the slats have fallen out, it is hardly worth while to try to correct it, as blinds are cheap, and new slats are not easily made by hand to take the places of the old ones that may have been lost; but, until it has reached this point, it may be readily and effectually corrected by taking off the blind, pushing the corners back to the proper right angle, and fixing them there by screwing on the face of the blind, at the corners, iron angles which are made for the purpose, and can be obtained from any large hardware dealer for a few cents each. As they are stamped out of heavy steel plate, they are very strong; and as the angle cannot be distorted, after they are once firmly screwed on, without breaking them, they cure effectually the disposition of the blind to sag. For small blinds, one angle-iron is sufficient to maintain all the four corners indefinitely in their proper position, on the principle that if one angle of a parallelogram is a right angle, all the others must be right angles; but, for blinds of the usual size, it is better to use two, as the strain on the screws of a single one is very severe. In and about New York, blind hinges can sometimes be found, which comprise an angle-iron of this kind; but they are unknown in New England, where the hinges are always put on the back of the blind, and a separate angle-iron must be used for the face. Besides setting up and securing the corners, the hinges and fastenings of blinds need occasional inspection, as a broken hinge, or a missing fastening, means violent slamming in the next storm, which will probably break the blind, and very possibly the window also.

Sagging of blinds.

The dilapidations which follow neglect in the inside of a house usually involve more expense in repairing than those which make themselves manifest on the outside; so that the first indication that anything is out of order should be investigated, and a remedy applied at once. Settlements from decay, or from the shrinkage or bending of timbers, or the failure of foundations, have already been treated of, and it is only necessary to add that they should be attended to immediately. Apart from these structural difficulties, the most common source of interior troubles is water. This may come from a burst or leaky pipe, or fixture, and will, in that case, require to be treated by a plumber, unless the householder possesses courage and skill enough to deal with it himself; or, it may come from rain, admitted through a leaky roof, or an open or broken window. Under any circumstances the leak should be immediately found and stopped, as continued or repeated wetting will bring down ceilings, and stain floors irretrievably, besides, in many cases, swelling the boards, so as to force them up from the beams, causing irregularities of surface which are not easily remedied.

For the householder who has not glaziers at hand it is of importance to know how to cut and set a light of glass on occasion, as it often happens that a broken pane, unless quickly repaired, may give serious trouble. Cheap glass-cutters, the cutting part of which consists of a wheel of hardened steel, may be bought for 15 or 20 cents; and there are people who can cut a piece of glass with a red-hot poker, or a string dipped in alcohol; but a good glazier's diamond can be bought at the large hardware stores, or the painters' supply houses, for about $4.00, and will soon save its cost by the superiority of its work; as, with its help, not only window-panes, but small pieces of glass, for framing pictures, making microscope slides, and a multitude of other purposes, can be cut with precision, and without the waste from breakage which commonly attends the use of the cheap cutters. It is not at all difficult to learn by trial how to use a glazier's diamond. Very little pressure is necessary; and, after the cut is once started, it is readily guided.

Setting glass.

It is said to be a rule of the glaziers' unions that any member who may be called to replace a broken or cracked pane of glass must begin his labors by smashing the old pane into small splinters, before he sets the new one, so as to prevent any person from utilizing the pieces of the old pane by cutting them into smaller ones. As a pane of window-glass of ordinary quality often costs $1.50 to $2.00 the advantage to the householder of being able to cut and set his own glass, without having pieces destroyed that might be utilized elsewhere, is obvious.

Supposing a window-pane to need replacing, the first step in doing so is to ascertain the size of the glass required for the purpose. Usually, the sash-bars are "rebated" out three-sixteenths of an inch to receive the glass, so that the new pane required will be three-eighths of an inch wider than the "sight size," or clear dimensions, of the sash in which it is to be set. In the case of very large lights, the rebate may occasionally be deeper than this; but, if so, this will usually be shown by the moulding on the sash-bar (Fig. 31) which occupies the same space as the rebate; so that the distances between the flat portions of the sash-bars give correctly the size of glass required; or the size may be measured on the outside of the sash, where, of course, the depth of the rebate is visible. Usually, in order to avoid waste of glass, sashes are made so as to take glass of sizes measured by even inches; but this is not an invariable rule.