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Mechanics Of The Household | by E. S. Keene



A course of study devoted to domestic machinery and household mechanical appliances

TitleMechanics Of The Household
AuthorE. S. Keene
PublisherMcgraw-Hill Book Company, Inc.
Year1918
Copyright1918, Mcgraw-Hill Book Company, Inc.
AmazonMechanics Of The Household

E. S. Keene, Dean Of Mechanic Arts North Dakota Agricultural College

First Edition

-Introduction
This book is intended to be a presentation of the physical principles and mechanism employed in the equipment that has been developed for domestic convenience. Its aim is to provide information relati...
-Chapter I. The Steam Heating Plant
The use of steam as a means of heating dwellings is common in every part of the civilized world. Plants of all sizes are constructed, that not only give satisfactory service but are efficient in the u...
-Heat Of Vaporization
The temperature of the steam is comparatively an unimportant factor in the amount of heat given up by the radiator. It is the heat liberated at the time the steam changes from vapor to water that prod...
-Steam Temperatures
While the temperature of steam is an unimportant factor in the heating of buildings there are many uses in which it is of the greatest consequence. When steam is employed for cooking or baking it is n...
-Gage Pressure - Absolute Pressure
In the practice of engineering among English speaking people, pressures are stated in pounds per square inch, above the atmosphere. This is termed gage pressure. It is that indicated by the gages of b...
-Two-Pipe System
Fig. 5 is a diagram of a two-pipe system. Here, each radiator has a supply pipe, through which the steam enters, and a return pipe which conducts the water away. The branch pipes from a common supply ...
-Separate-Return System
A diagram of a separate-return system is shown in Fig. 7. In this figure, the radiator, boiler and supply pipes are the same as those of Fig. 5, but there is a separate return pipe from each of the ra...
-Overhead Or Drop System
There is yet another gravity system of steam heating that is sometimes used in large buildings where economy in the use of pipe is desired; this is the overhead or drop system shown in Fig. 9. It is n...
-Water-Filled Radiators
Radiators frequently fill with water and are noisy because of the position of the valve. This may be true in any gravity system but particularly so in radiators having a single pipe. When the valve of...
-Automatic Air Vents
These vents depend for 'their action on the expansion of a part of the valve due to the temperature of the steam. The valve remains closed when hot and opens when cold. The difference in temperature b...
-Steam Radiator Valves
Like most other mechanical appliances that are extensively used, radiator valves are made by a great number of manufacturers and in many different forms. Fig. 14. - Steam radiator valve. Fig. 15...
-The House-Heating Steam Boiler
House-heating boilers were formerly made of sheet metal and are still so constructed to some extent, but by far the greater number are now made of cast iron. Sheet-metal boilers are constructed at the...
-The Water Column
In Fig. 18 the water column is shown at C. It is attached to the boiler by pipes at points above and below the water line, so as to allow a free passage of the water of the boiler to the interior. The...
-The Steam Gage
Steam pressure is measured in pounds to the square inch above the pressure of the atmosphere. The gages used for indicating the pressure of the steam are made in several forms but the type most common...
-The Safety Valve
All steam boilers should be provided with safety valves as a safeguard against excessive steam pressures. Of the various types of safety valves, that known as the pop-valve is most commonly used on ho...
-Rule For Proportioning Radiators
Rules for determining the amount of radiating surface that will be required to satisfactorily heat a building to 70F. regardless of weather conditions are entirely empirical, that is, they are de...
-Forms Of Radiators
Radiators are much the same in appearance for both steam and hot-water heating. They are hollow cast-iron columns so designed that they may be fastened together in units of any number of sections. The...
-Radiator Finishings
In steam and hot-water heating the decoration of the radiators is a much more important item than that of a good-looking surface or one which will harmonize with the setting. Until recently radiator f...
-Pipe Coverings
All hot-water or steam pipes in the basement and in other places not intended to be used for heating should be covered with some form of insulating material. At ordinary working temperature a square f...
-The High-Pressure Hot-Water System
In the hot-water plant described the expansion tank is open to the air and the water in the system is subjected to the pressure of the atmosphere alone. The heat of the furnace may be sufficiently gre...
-Heating-Plant Design
A heating plant should be designed by a person of experience. No set of rules has yet been devised that will meet every condition. Carpenter's rules given on page 25 serve for hot water as well as for...
-Overhead System Of Hot-Water Heating
In Fig. 35 is illustrated another system of high-pressure hot-water heating that corresponds to the overhead system of steam heating. It differs from the high-pressure system already described in the ...
-Expansion Tanks
Fig. 36 is a form of expansion tank in common use. It may be used for either the high - or low-pressure system. The body of the tank is made of galvanized iron and is made to stand a considerable amou...
-Radiator Connection
The method of connecting the radiators to the distributing pipes depends entirely on local conditions. In a well-balanced system any of the methods shown in Figs. 38, 39 or 40 might be used with good ...
-Hot-Water Radiators
Radiators for hot-water heating are most commonly of cast iron and in appearance are the same as those used for steam heating. The only difference in the two forms is in the openings between the secti...
-Air Vents
In the use of the systems of hot-water heating described, every radiator must be supplied with an air vent of some kind to take away'the trapped air which accumulates through use. Any kind of a valve ...
-Chapter III. The Hot-Air Furnace
Of the methods of heating dwellings other than by stoves, that of the hot-air furnace is the most common. Of the various modes of furnace heating it is the least expensive in first cost and most rapid...
-Construction
The furnace, in general construction, consists of a cast-iron fire-box with its heating surfaces, through which the flames and heated gases from the fire pass, on the way to the chimney; these with th...
-Furnace-Gas Leaks
The presence of furnace gas in the atmosphere of a house is not only annoying but may be a source of danger. Gas leaks are commonly due to the imperfect union of the various parts of which the furnace...
-Flues
It is customary to place the conducting pipes for the first floor in such a way as to use only the shortest connections. The flues used for the second floor produce, as in a chimney, a greater velocit...
-Combination Hot-Air And Hot-Water Heater
In the case of large houses heated by hot air it is sometimes better to use two or more furnaces than to attempt to carry the heat long distances in the customary pipes. Where heat is required in room...
-Chapter IV. Temperature Regulation
The method used for regulating the temperature of a house will depend on its size, the conditions under which it is to be used and the method of heating. In small houses the temperature may be satisfa...
-Damper Regulator For Steam Boiler
The damper regulator used on a steam boiler is a simple device that automatically controls the draft dampers by reason of the changing pressures of the steam. The object of the damper regulator is to ...
-Damper Regulators For Hot-Water Furnaces
The damper regulator for a hot-water boiler automatically controls the dampers of the furnace so as to keep the water of the boiler approximately at a constant temperature. The regulator is shown in F...
-The Thermostat Motor
The thermostat motor automatically opens and closes the furnace dampers or the valve that admits steam to the radiators as heat is demanded by the controller. The motor, as shown in Fig 53, consists ...
-Combined Thermostat And Damper Regulator
It is evident that, in heating a house by steam, the damper regulator governs only the steam pressure of the boiler. In the use of a thermostat alone, the regulation is that of the temperature of the ...
-Thermostat-Motor Connections
The arrangement of cords and pulleys used for attaching the thermostat motor to the furnace dampers will depend very much on local conditions. The motor can be placed in any convenient position so tha...
-Chapter V. Management Of Heating Plants
The following instructions on the care and management of steam and hot-water heating plants is printed with permission of the American Radiator Co. They were prepared as a guide to the successful oper...
-General Firing Rules
1. Put but little coal on a low fire. 2. When adding coal to the boiler, open the smoke-pipe damper (inside the smoke pipe) and close the cold-air check damper. This will make a draft through the fee...
-Weather And Time Of Day
In severe weather keep the fire pot full of coal, and run the heater by the dampers or regulator (if one is used). Thoroughly clean the grate twice a day. Let the top of the fire in front be level wit...
-Economy And Fuels
In running many boilers for moderate weather better results follow if the grate is not shaken too much or too often. Sometimes in moderate weather a body of ashes on the grate checks the fire and ther...
-For Burning Soft Coal
Some types of boilers are made to burn soft coal with economy, with least work. Some types are made specially to burn the meaner grades of soft coal. Firing to prevent smoke is a source of economy and...
-For Burning Coke
It is best to keep the pot full of fuel - keeping a large body of coke under a low fire rather than a little fuel under a strong fire. It must be remembered that coke makes a very hot fire because ...
-Air-Vent Valves On Radiators
In order to secure the full benefit of the heating surface of a hot-water radiator, the inside of the section must be free of air. When a radiator is air-bound it means that parts of the sections ar...
-Other Rules For Steam Boilers - To Fill Boiler
Open the feed-cock when the heater is connected with city or town water supply; if not, fill through the funnel. Let the water run until the gage-glass shows about half full of water. In the first fi...
-The Right Chimney Flue
The area of the flue should never be less than 8 inches in diameter if round, or 8 by 8 inches if square - unless for a very small heating boiler or tank heater. Nine or 10 inches round, or 8 by 12 re...
-Chapter VI. Plumbing
The term plumbing is usually understood to cover all piping and fixtures that carry water into the house and remove the waste material in the form of sewage. It does not include the pipes of the heati...
-Water Supply
The water supply taken from the street main is conducted to the house by the pipe shown in Fig. 58, at C. Fig. 63. - Corporation cock with lead connecting pipe. This pipe is generally of lead as p...
-Water Cocks
The development of modern plumbing has brought about the use of a great number of household mechanical appliances, that have received trade names little understood by the average person. The lack of d...
-Bibb-Cocks
On the kitchen sink, the water faucets, such as those shown in Fig. 66a, are termed bibb-cocks by the plumber. If the nozzle is plain, it is a plain bibb. If the nozzle is threaded so that a hose conn...
-Fuller Cocks
These cocks take their name from their inventer. They are made to suit every condition for which water cocks are used. Their universal use attests to their utility and excellence in service. Fig. 72 s...
-Basin Cocks
Water cocks for wash basins are made in two general types - the compression and the Fuller types of cocks. Their mechanism is much the same as for other similar styles adapted to the use for basins. ...
-Valves
The distinction between a cock and a valve is not at all definite. Custom has determined that in certain places a cock shall stop the flow of a liquid but in another place, perhaps of a similar nature...
-Kitchen And Laundry Fixtures
The development in modern plumbing has wrought many changes in the styles of household fixtures but none has been so great as that in the kitchen sink. The old style, insanitary, wooden sink has been ...
-The Bathroom
With the present-day improvements in plumbing, and the perfection in the manufacture of porcelain and enameled iron, the bathrooms of houses of moderate cost have become places of cleanliness, attract...
-Bath Tubs
Bath tubs are made in sizes that vary in length from 4 1/2 to 6 feet. They are constructed in a variety of forms and of materials to suit all conditions of service. For domestic use they are very gene...
-Wash Stands And Lavatories
Wash stands for bathrooms are obtainable in many forms, either plain or ornate, to suit every condition and style of architectural finish. Fig. 92.-Enameled iron wall wash basin. Fig. 93.-Enamel...
-Traps
The waste pipes from the wash basin and bath tub are always provided with some form of trap, to prevent air from entering the room from the sewer, charged with offending odors. Traps are made in many ...
-Back-Venting
To prevent the possibility of loss of seal by siphoning and the escape of sewer gas, traps are back-vented to the main stack or to a separate vent stack. The venting is accomplished by joining a pipe ...
-Soil Pipe
The soil pipe, of which the waste stack or house drain is composed,is made of cast iron and comes from the factory covered with asphaltum paint. It may be obtained in two grades, the standard and extr...
-Water Closets
Water closets are made in a great number of styles to suit the architectural surroundings and the various conditions under which they are to be used. Many forms of water closets are manufactured to co...
-Siphon-Jet Closet
What is considered by many to be the most satisfactory closet yet designed, is that of the siphon-jet type shown in Fig. 103. The flushing action of this closet is entirely different from that of the ...
-Flush Tanks
The water closet depends for its action on one of two general types of flush tanks, the high and the low forms. The tank is automatically filled with water and when wanted, a large volume of water is ...
-Opening Stopped Pipes
It occasionally happens that pipes leading from the various toilet fixtures become stopped because of accumulations or by articles that accidentally pass the entrance. In case the pipe has a trap conn...
-Sewer Gas
The prevalent fear of the deleterious effect of escaping sewer gas is one that has been magnified to an unwarrantable degree. Among bacteriologists it is very generally recognized that none of the dre...
-Range Boilers
The hot-water supply to the household is of so much importance, that the installation of the range boiler should be made with great care, and an understanding of the principle on which it works should...
-The Water-Back
The most common method of heating water for the range boiler is by use of the water-back or water-front of the kitchen range. The water-back is a hollow cast-iron piece that is made to take the place ...
-Excessive Pressure
Accidents due to the explosion of hot-water backs are not at all rare and it should be borne in mind that there is danger of excessive pressure being formed should the pipes b and c become stopped. Un...
-Location Of Range Boiler
It is sometimes desired to place the range boiler on a different floor, either above or below the range. While such arrangements are entirely possible the circulation of the water is not so good as th...
-Horizontal Range Boilers
It occasionally happens that in a small kitchen there is no convenient floor space for the range boiler and it becomes necessary to suspend it from the ceiling. It is perfectly possible to station the...
-Tank Heaters
When the demand for hot water is sufficient to warrant a separate hot-water heater the apparatus similar to Fig. 119 is used. With such a heater, the conditions of overheated water - to be described l...
-Instantaneous Heaters
In isolated bathrooms where no constant supply of hot water is available, instantaneous hot-water heaters are much used. In many houses where a range fire is used intermittently, particularly during t...
-Chapter VII. Water Supply
The use of water enters into each detail of the affairs of everyday life and forms a part of every article of food; its quality has much to do with the health of the family, and its convenience of dis...
-Water Analysis
In order to be assured as to the quality of drinking water, it should be subjected to analysis and the result of the analysis inspected by a physician of good standing. Such analysis may usually be ob...
-Pokegama Water
The water from Pokegama Spring at Detroit, Minn, is used widely through the Northwest as a table water. It is considered to be a very excellent drinking water because of the low amount of solids and t...
-River Water
The water supply of the city of Fargo, N. D., is taken from the Red River of the North, which after being filtered through a mechanical filtration plant is supplied to the water system of the city. Th...
-Artesian Water
The analysis of the sample of artesian water given below is an example of the water analysis made by the North Dakota Pure Food Laboratory. It furnishes an illustration of the type of reports that are...
-Medical Water
The solids that occur most commonly in spring and well water appear in the form of mineral salts. It frequently happens that salts giving a cathartic action are pres-ent in sufficient quantity to rend...
-Organic Matter
Organic matter may come from peat swamps, decaying leaves and grasses; or it may come from decayed animal matter which finds its way into the soil; or worst of all it may come from cesspools or other ...
-Hardness In Water
Water that holds no mineral matter in solution is soft water and when soap is added will readily form a lather. The presence of lime or magnesia is commonly the cause of hardness in water. Either ...
-Water Softening With Hydrated Silicates
By W. L. Stock - ham, assistant chemist, North Dakota Experiment Station. The use of chemicals in softening water requires the mechanical removal of the separated materials by skimming, settling or ...
-Polluted Water
Well water that is roily or that possesses objectionable taste or odor may be suspected of containing polluting matter and should be boiled before being used for drinking porposes until such time as m...
-Safe Distance In The Location Of Wells
In the location of a well, the distance of safety from sources of pollution will depend, in a considerable measure, on the character of the soil and the quantity and concentration of the pollution mat...
-Water Table
The upper level of the saturated portion of the soil is known as the water table. It has a definite surface that conforms to the broader surface irregularities. While a definite, determinable water ta...
-Selection Of A Type Of Well
The chief factor which controls the selection of a type of well is the nature of the water-bearing earth, the amount of water required, the cost of construction and the care of the resulting supply. ...
-Construction Of Wells
Wells are constructed by different methods, depending on the character of the soil in which they are sunk. Their excavation is usually accomplished by one of three general methods: by digging; by driv...
-Construction Of Wells. Continued
Coverings Of Concrete The use of concrete for the coverings of wells, cisterns and springs has become a recognized form of the best construction. It is not more expensive than other good materials an...
-Cleaning Of Wells
Very few dug wells are so constructed as to exclude dust and washings from the ground. It is, therefore, necessary that they be occasionally cleaned. Accumulations from these causes may be sufficient ...
-Peculiarities Of Wells
Owing to the formation of the waterbearing earths, from which they receive their water, many wells possess marked peculiarities of behavior that often give rise to local reputation because of their va...
-Pumps
Pumps for lifting and elevating water are made of both wood and iron in almost endless variety; but for domestic purposes they are of two general types - the lift pump and the force pump - which inclu...
-The Force Pump
The house force pump is often used in place of the ordinary lift pump, when no other means is at hand for providing water under pressure. It furnishes a limited means for lawn sprinkling and gives som...
-Tank Pump
The type of pump used with a water-supply plant will depend entirely on the amount of water that is used. If the supply of water to be provided is for only one or two people the house force pump such ...
-Well Pumps
The pumps intended for raising water from wells are practically the same in construction as the house pump, except that they are intended to deliver a greater volume of water and sometimes to work und...
-Wooden Pump
The wooden pump of Fig. 134 furnishes a good illustration of a type that was formerly used in great numbers. It is an inexpensive and efficient pump made almost entirely of wood except the cylinder wh...
-Pumps For Driven Wells
The method of constructing driven wells - that of driving a pipe into the earth to the water - bearing stratum of sand or gravel - requires a special end to prevent the pump tube from becoming stopped...
-Deep-Well Pumps
The principle of operation as described in the lift pump takes advantage of the atmospheric pressure to lift the water above the first valve. The limiting distance to which water can be lifted by the ...
-Rain-Water Cisterns
Cisterns for the storage of rain water have been used from the time immemorial and are constructed in a great variety of forms. For household use they are often made in the form of wooden or metal tan...
-Filters
Unfiltered cistern water is not, as a rule, fit for drinking purposes because of pollution from dust and impurities washed from the roof, but for bathing and laundry work filtered rain water is greatl...
-The Hydraulic Ram
In places where its use is possible, the hydraulic ram is a most convenient and inexpensive means of mechanical water supply. It is simple in construction, requires very little attention and its cost ...
-Single-Acting Hydraulic Ram
Fig. 140 represents the installation of a single-acting hydraulic ram, placed to take water from a spring E, and deliver it to an elevated tank at the house on the hill. Fig. 140. - Hydraulic ram d...
-The Double-Acting Hydraulic Ram
The diagram of Fig. 142 illustrates the working principle of the double-acting hydraulic ram mentioned above; where the water from a muddy stream is used to drive the ram and that from a separate sour...
-Domestic Water-Supply Plants
Until recent years, no thought was given to private water-supply plants, in any except the more pretentious residences. It was formerly supposed that the cost of machinery and installation of such pla...
-Gravity Water-Supply Plant
In point of simplic'ty, the plant shown in Fig. 143 represents a water system that answers every purpose of a cottage and yet is only an elevated tank for storage of water, combined with a house force...
-Pressure-Tank System Of Water Supply
The water-supply plant shown in Fig. 144 is another simple construction, somewhat more elaborate than the last, so arranged that the danger of freezing is practically eliminated. This is a simple pres...
-The Pressure Tank
The water leaves the tank by a pipe attached near the bottom and branches to supply each fixture, to which the water is to be conducted. In the drawing, the pipe may be traced from the point where it ...
-Power Water-Supply Plants
Where the pump is expected to furnish water to any considerable amount beyond that for household use, it is desirable that the plant be power-driven. If the work of watering stock, lawn sprinkling, et...
-Wind-Power Water Supply
In Fig. 148 is shown a larger and more complete plant than the former, in which a windmill furnishes the power for pumping and a large underground tank is utilized for the main supply of water. The ta...
-The Water Lift
The water lift is a combined water engine and pump, the motive power for which is the pressure from the well-water tank. The soft water, pumped by the water lift, is stored in the smaller pressure tan...
-Chapter VIII. Sewage Disposal
The disposal of sewage, in a convenient and sanitary manner is a problem of serious importance in the equipment of isolated dwellings with modern household conveniences. The manner of heating, lightin...
-The Septic Tank
The septic tank alone, as used for sewage disposal, is often termed a sewage purifying plant, when in reality it is only intended to change the sewage into a form in which it can be readily carried aw...
-The Septic Tank With A Sand-Bed Filter
In places where the use of the septic tank alone is not possible, it sometimes happens that the natural conditions are such as will permit the effluent to be drained directly into the soil. With such ...
-The Septic Tank And Anaerobic Filter
In places where the use of the simple septic tank is not possible and where the character of the soil will not permit of a natural sand-bed filter, an anaerobic filter may be constructed through which...
-Limit Of Efficiency
Much that has been written on the subject conveys the impression that the septic tank alone, used under various conditions, will eliminate disease germs and all offending features of sewage and render...
-Chapter IX. Coal
Coal is of prehistoric origin, formed from accumulation of vegetable matter, supposed to be the remains of immense forests. In past ages the deposits underwent destructive distillation from great heat...
-Oxidation Of Hydrocarbons
In the oxidation of hydrocarbons, as that of burning coal gas, the combination of the elements forms carbon dioxide and water. The presence of the water, formed in combustion, is often shown in the fo...
-Oxidation Of Hydrocarbons. Part 2
Graphitic Anthracite This is a type of coal found in Rhode Island and Massachusetts which resembles both graphite and anthracite coal. It is gray in color, very hard and burns with extreme difficulty...
-Oxidation Of Hydrocarbons. Part 3
Charcoal This is made from wood by driving off the volatile constituents; the residual carbon, which forms the charcoal is a fuel that burns without smoke or flame. Charcoal is made by piling wood in...
-Comparative Value Of Coal To Other Fuels
Until a comparatively recent time, coal has been sold by weight and reputation alone; but conditions are rapidly approaching, which will require it to be sold according to its composition and heating ...
-Price Of Coal
The value of coal as a fuel will depend on the amount of heat it is capable of producing when burned; its price should therefore be determined by the heating value per pound of fuel as purchased. Seco...
-Price Of Coal. Continued
To change the 2.44 pounds of water, into steam at the atmospheric pressure requires 969. 7 B.t.u. (heat of vaporization), practically 970 B.t.u. per pound of water. The heat required to vaporize 2.44 ...
-Chapter X. Atmospheric Humidity
The physical effect of atmospheric humidity has come to be recognized by all who deal in problems of house heating, sanitation and hygiene. The difference in effect of dry atmosphere, from that of air...
-Atmospheric Humidity. Continued
The normal atmospheric temperature of 70F. with a relative humidity of 50 to 60 per cent. saturation produces a condition that is one of agreeable warmth to the average person in health and is re...
-The Hygrometer
The instrument most commonly employed for determining atmospheric humidity is the hygrometer. This appliance is composed of two thermometers mounted in a frame with a vessel for holding water. One of ...
-The Hygrodeik
In Fig. 158 is shown a form of hygrometer known as a hygrodeik, by means of which atmospheric humidity may be determined without the use of the tables. In the figure the wet-bulb and dry-bulb thermome...
-Dial Hygrometers
Various forms of hygrometers are in use, in which a pointer is intended to indicate on a dial the percentage of atmospheric humidity. That shown in Fig. 160 is one of the common forms. Instruments of ...
-Dew-Point
Dew is formed whenever falling temperature of the air passes the point where saturation occurs. The reduction of the temperature of air raises the relative humidity because of the diminished capacity ...
-Dew-Point. Continued
To Determine The Dew-Point The dew-point may be found by a number of methods, usually described in works on physics but practical determinations are made with a hygrometer or psychrometer and a dew-p...
-Frost Prediction
The formation of dew is always attended with a liberation of heat - the heat of vaporization - which tends to check the further decline of temperature. The heat thus developed is usually sufficient to...
-Frost Prediction. Continued
Prevention Of Frost From the discussion of frost formation it is evident that, the temperature of the dew-point being the determining factor in its probable occurrence, any expedient that may be used...
-Humidifying Apparatus
Opportunity for adding moisture, in the desired quantity, to the air of the average dwelling is limited to the evaporation of water in the heating plant, from vessels attached to the radiators or that...
-Chapter XI. Ventilation
The purity of air in any habitable enclosure is determined by the amount of CO2 (Carbonic acid gas) included in its composition. The process of ventilation is that of adding fresh air to the impure at...
-Ventilation. Continued
The aim of architects is to construct buildings as completely windproof as possible, but that such construction is attained in only a slight degree is sometimes very evident during cold weather. No ma...
-Quantity Of Air Discharged By A Flue
Any change of temperature of air produces a change equal to 1/491 part of its volume, for each degree variation. If a cubic foot of air is raised in temperature 1F., its volume is 1/491 part larg...
-Quantity Of Air Discharged By A Flue. Continued
V = 8T - t / 491 H The formula may now be used to express the volume of discharge of air from a flue. Suppose such a flue contains an area of 1 square foot in cross-section and that it is desi...
-Cost Of Ventilation
The cost of good ventilation is often looked upon as prohibitive, because of the expense in heat necessary to keep the inside atmosphere at standard purity. Cost of ventilation is determined by analys...
-The Wolpert Air Tester
The purity of air is expressed by quantity of carbonic acid gas included in its composition. In order to determine the degree of purity of any atmosphere the amount of contained gas must be determined...
-Mechanical Ventilation
Draft ventilation produced by open windows, flues and chimneys is influenced by extremes of temperature and by the force and changing direction of the wind; it is, therefore, but imperfectly controlle...
-Ventilation Apparatus
Fig. 172 illustrates the form of apparatus used for ventilating buildings where no attempt is made at washing or humidifying the air. Enclosed in a sheet-iron case C is a fan which is driven by the el...
-Air Conditioning
In addition to the possibility of a constant supply of air, a combination of the exhaust and plenum methods admits of air purification. With such a plant, the air may be washed free from all suspended...
-Humidifying Plants
Mechanical ventilation plants that are intended for washing the air may be made up of parts similar to that of Fig. 173, but in addition to the apparatus shown provision is made for the air to pass th...
-Vaporization As A Cooling Agent
The evaporation of water has a distinct value aside from humidifying the air, in that the cooling effect is in direct proportion to the added moisture. In the process of evaporation the heat necessary...
-Air-Cooling Plants
The use of air-washing and humidifying plants so far mentioned has been confined to elimination of dust and the addition of moisture to air, under winter conditions. The same type of apparatus, used i...
-Humidity Control
The method of regulating atmospheric humidity in a humidifying plant will be determined by the conditions under which it is intended to work. There are a variety of means employed that may be used to ...
-Chapter XII. Gaseous And Liquid Fuels
Gaseous And Liquid Fuels Gaseous and liquid fuels used for domestic illumination and heating may be divided into three general classes - coal gas, including carburetted water gas and producer gas and...
-Gaseous And Liquid Fuels. Continued
Blau Gas Another commercial adaptation of oil gas is that known as Blau gas. In this process of storage the gas is subjected to 100 atmospheres of pressure - about 1500 pounds. This pressure is suffi...
-Measurement Of Gas
When gas of any kind is purchased from a manufacturing company, the amount used is measured by a gas meter, located at the point where the gas main enters the building. The readings of the meter are t...
-How To Read The Gas Meter Index
The index of a gas meter looks quite complicated, but it is really a very simple contrivance. The small circle on the top in Fig. 177 is for testing purposes only and need not be considered. The dial ...
-Prepayment Meters
In many places it is desirable to sell gas in small quantities and to prepay the amount for a given supply of gas. This is accomplished by a meter such as that of Fig. 179. The meter is constructed mu...
-Gas Ranges
Gas ranges and all other heaters using gas as a fuel are constructed to utilize the principle of the Bunsen burner. Fig. 180 illustrates the type of burner used in the Jewel gas range. This represent...
-Lighting And Heating With Gasoline
The remarkable growth of modern cities, the building of small towns in the west, and the improvement in suburban and rural homes has created a demand for efficient means of illumination in the form of...
-Lighting And Heating With Gasoline. Continued
Gasoline for household purposes, as for use in cold-process lighting systems should contain not more than a very slight amount of constituents that do not vaporize readily. It is obvious that a gasol...
-The Cold-Process Gas Machine
The gas machine of the cold-process type is so constructed that air is forced through a tank or carburetor, containing gasoline and remains in its presence until saturated with gasoline vapor. This sa...
-The Hollow-Wire System Of Gasoline Lighting And Heating
The hollow-wire system of gasoline lighting possesses the advantage of simplicity in construction and ease of installation that makes it attractive, particularly for use in small dwellings. The ease w...
-Mantle Gas Lamps
Mantle lamps that are intended for using city gas are much the same in construction as those using the cold-process gasoline gas; the styles of mechanism differ somewhat with manufacturers but all lam...
-Open-Flame Gas Burners
Gas jets of the open - flame type continue to be used to some extent but the more efficient mantle lamp has very largely supplanted lights of this kind. In the past, these gas lights were made in a gr...
-The Inverted-Mantel Gasoline Lamp
The inverted-mantle gasoline-gas lamp shown in Fig. 194, furnishes a good example of mechanism and principle of operation, when used with the hollow-wire system. This is the bracket style of lamp but ...
-Portable Gasoline Lamps
The portable form of desk and reading lamps for the use of gasoline is made, in a great variety of styles. They are sometimes constructed to feed by gravity, but by far the greater number are operated...
-Central-Generator Plants
The central-generator or tube system of lighting with gasoline, differs from the other methods described, in the manner of generating and distributing the supply of gas to the lamps. In the hollow-wir...
-Central-Generator Plants. Continued
Central-Generator Gas Lamps Fig. 199 shows the general construction and arrangement of the parts of the inverted-mantle-lamp used with the central-generator system. In outward appearance the lamp is ...
-Boulevard Lamps
Gasoline lamps for outside illumination may be constructed to operate with any of the systems described, but the hollow-wire and the generator systems are most conveniently used, because each post may...
-Gasoline Sad Irons
The use of gaseous or liquid fuel is always attended by an element of danger, because of the possibility of accidental explosion. The use of gasoline, the most highly volatile of all liquid fuels, has...
-Alcohol Sad Irons
Irons of the same style are also made in which alcohol is used as a fuel. The alcohol irons differ in construction from those using gasoline only in the amount of air that is mixed with the vapor. In ...
-Alcohol Table Stoves
In the United States the use of alcohol as a fuel has never been extensively employed because of the duty imposed on its manufacture by the Federal Government. In 1896 this duty was removed from denat...
-Danger From Gaseous And Liquid Fuels
All combustible gases or vapors, when mixed within definite amounts, are explosive. The violence of the explosion will be in proportion to the volumes of the gas and the condition of confinement. Whe...
-Acetylene-Gas Machines
Acetylene is a gas that is generated when water is absorbed by calcium carbide, after the manner in which carbonic acid gas is evolved when lime slakes with water, but with the liberation of a larger ...
-Types Of Acetylene Generators
There are two general methods of generating acetylene for domestic illuminating and heating purposes: that of adding carbide to water, and that in which the water is mixed with carbide. The two types ...
-Gas Lighters
The acetylene gas jets are lighted ordinarily with a match or taper but electric igniters are often used for that purpose. Electric lighters for acetylene lamps are practically the same as those used ...
-Chapter XIII. Electricity
The adaptability of electricity to household use for lighting; heating and the generation of power has brought into use a host of mechanical devices that have found a permanent place in every communit...
-Incandescent Electric Lamps
Anything made in the form of an illuminating device, in which the lighting element is rendered incandescent by electricity, may properly be called an incandescent lamp, whether the medium is incandesc...
-Candlepower
The incandescent lamps are usually rated in light-giving properties by their value in horizontal candlepower. This represents the mean value of the light of the lamp which comes from a horizontal plan...
-Candlepower. Continued
Lamp Labels For many years all incandescent lamps were rated in candlepower and were made in sizes 8, 16, 32, etc., candle-power. On the label was printed the voltage at which the lamp was intended t...
-Illumination
The development of high-efficiency lamps has caused a radical change in the methods of illumination. With cheaper light came the desire to more nearly approximate the effect of daylight in illuminatio...
-Reflectors
The character and form of reflectors have much to do with the effective distribution of the light produced by the lamp. The most efficient form of reflectors are made of glass and designed to project ...
-Lamp Transformers
Lamps of the Mazda type, constructed to work at the usual commercial voltages, are made in low-power forms to consume as little as 10 watts; but owing to the difficulty of arranging a suitable filamen...
-Units Of Electrical Measurement
The general application of electricity has brought into common use the terms necessary in its measurement and units of quantity by which it is sold. The volt, ampere and ohm are terms that are used to...
-Miniature Lamps
Miniature electric lamps include all that are not used for general illuminating purposes. The term applies more particularly to the form of the base than to the voltage or candlepower of the filament....
-Effect Of Voltage Variations
Voltage variation may be temporary, due to changing load in the circuit, or in constantly overloaded circuits the voltage may be constantly below normal. The change in electric pressure affects in a c...
-Turn-Down Electric Lamps
The ordinary incandescent lamp lacks the flexibility of gas and oil lamp, in that the amount of light cannot be varied at will. This feature is attained in the electric turn-down lamp either by resist...
-The Dim-A-Lite
In another form of turn-down lamp the change in amount of light is produced by external resistance in the circuit. The resistance is furnished by a coil of wire which is enclosed in a special lamp soc...
-Gas-Filled Lamps
Until 1913 the filaments of all Mazda lamps operated in a vacuum. The vacuum serving the purpose of preventing oxidation and at the same time it reduced the energy loss to the least amount. It was fou...
-Daylight Lamps
The color of the light from an incandescent electric lamp depends on the temperature of the filament. In the case of the gas-filled Mazda lamp the high filament temperature produces a light that diffe...
-Miniature Tungsten Lamps
The wonderful light-giving properties of tungsten has made possible the use of miniature incandescent lamps for an almost infinite variety of usages. The miniature lamps are similar in action to other...
-Flash Lights
These are portable electric lamps composed of a miniature incandescent bulb, which with one or more dry cells are enclosed in a frame to suit the purpose of their use. They are made in pocket sizes or...
-The Electric Flat-Iron
The changes that have been made in domestic appliances by the extended use of electricity have brought many innovations but none are more pronounced than the improvements made in the domestic flat-iro...
-The Electric Toaster
As shown in Fig. 229 the toaster is made of a series of heating elements mounted on mica frames and supported on a porcelain base. It is an example of heating by exposed wires and direct radiation. Th...
-Motors
As a means of developing mechanical power in small units, the electric motor has made possible its application in many household uses that were formerly performed entirely by manual labor. As a domest...
-Fuse Plugs
Every electric circuit is liable to occurrences known as short-circuiting or shorting. This is a technical term describing a condition where, by accident or design, the wires of a circuit are in any...
-Electric Heaters
All electric heating devices - whether in the form of hot plates, ovens, stoves or other domestic heating apparatus - possess heating elements somewhat similar to the flat-iron or the toaster. The con...
-Intercommunicating Telephones
This form of telephone is used over short distances such as from room to room in buildings or for connecting the. house with the stable, garage, etc. It is complete, in that it possesses the same feat...
-Electric Signals
Electrical signaling devices for household use, in the form of bells and buzzers, are made in a great variety of forms and sizes to suit every condition of requirement. The vibrating mechanism of the ...
-Electric Signals. Continued
Buzzers Electric bells are often objectionable as signal calls because of their clamor, but with the removal of the bell the vibrating armature serves equally well as a signal but without the undesir...
-Burglar Alarms
A burglar alarm is any device that will give notice of the attempted entrance of an intruder. It is usually in the form of a bell or buzzer placed in circuit with a battery, as a doorbell system, in w...
-Table Pushes
Call bells to be rung from the dining-room table are connected with an annunciator or to a separate bell. The table pushes may be temporarily clamped on the edge of the table and connected by a cord t...
-Bell-Ringing Transformers
The general employment of alternating electricity for all commercial service requiring distant transmission is because of the possibility of changing the voltage to suit any condition. The energy tran...
-The Recording Wattmeter
To determine the amount of electricity used by consumers, each circuit is provided with some form of wattmeter. These meters might be more correctly called watt-hour meters since they register the wat...
-Examples Of Meter Readings
Fig. 253a shows an example of an ordinary dial reading. Commencing at the first right-hand pointer, Fig. 253c, it is noted that the last figure passed over by the pointer is 1. The next circle to the ...
-Periodic Electricity Tests
Rule 17 Each watt-hour meter shall be tested according to the following schedule and adjusted whenever it is found to be in error more than 1 per cent., the tests both before and after adjustment bei...
-Electric Batteries
Electric batteries are composed of electric cells that are made in two general types: the primary cell, in which electricity is generated by the decomposition of zinc; and the secondary cell or storag...
-Battery Formation
For ordinary household work as that of operating doorbells, etc., the cells which form a battery are joined in series, that is the positive or carbon pole of one cell is joined to the zinc or negative...
-Battery Formation. Continued
Battery Testers The strength of a cell is determined by the amperes of current it is capable of producing; therefore, a meter that will indicate the amount of current being produced is used to test...
-Electric Conductors
Covered wire for carrying electricity is made in a great variety of forms and designated by names that have been suggested by their use. These wires are made of a single strand or in cables, where sev...
-Lamp Cord
The flexible cord used for drop lights, connectors, portable lamps, extensions, etc., is made of two cords twisted together or two cords laid parallel and covered with braided silk or cotton. The cond...
-Private Electric Generating Plants
The conveniences to be derived from the use of electricity were for many years available only by those who lived in distributing areas covered by commercial electrical generating plants. Except in tow...
-Storage Batteries
These batteries have already been mentioned as secondary batteries. They are sometimes called electric accumulators. The electricity is stored or accumulated, not by reason of the destruction of an el...
-The Pilot Cell
In order to make apparent this density of the electrolyte without the necessity of its measurement with a hydrometer, one cell of the battery is provided with a gage as that of Fig. 262. This is an en...
-Electric Light Wiring
In the equipment of a house for the use of electricity, the wiring, together with distributing panel, the various outlets, receptacles, switches, and other appliances that make up the system, is of mo...
-Installation Of Service Switch
Service switch shall be installed in a moisture-proof metal box with hinged door. Panel Cabinet The distributing panel cabinet shall be of steel not less than No. 12 gage reinforced with angle iron ...
-Installation Of Service Switch. Part 2
Call Bells The contractor shall furnish, install and connect all push buttons, bells, buzzers and annunciators, as shown on plans or therein described. All wiring shall be cleated in joists, studs, e...
-Installation Of Service Switch. Part 3
Automatic Door Switch Where indicated on the plan, clothes closets shall be equipped with automatic door switch to connect the light when the door is open. Fig. 266 is placed in the door frame in suc...
-Installation Of Service Switch. Part 4
Service Switch The service entrance switch may be selected from the three styles shown in Figs. 269,a, b, and c. Fig. 271. - Pilot lights. Fig. 272. - Wall and ceiling sockets. Fig. 269,a ...







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