480





RECORD  AND  GUIDE





March 20, 1915





USEFUL APPLIANCES





Novelties, New Applications of Familiar Device*
and the Trend of Invention, Designed to Aid the
Architect, Builder and Building Manager, Described
Without   Regard   to   Advertising   Consideration





133





Saves Carpets and Floors.

MUCH damage is done to carpets and
floors by the dripping from radiator
air valves, especially in hotels and apart¬
ment houses. This can be remedied by
inscrtinj^, over thc entire valve, a glass
receptacle that is be¬
ing introduced by a
Brooklyn concern.
The manufacturers
say that the device
will fit on any radia¬
tor air valve, and
that it saves work
and worry by catch¬
ing the condensing
steam and at the
same time allows
enough to escape
into the room to
keep air in the room
moist.      It    deadens

I,.                  . ,      the    sizzling    sound

1                  i        that   emanates   from

—^                  !        the  steam  jet  when

the valve is open,
and is sanitary, useful and inexpensive.
It is made of glass, in one piece. The
cut shows how it is applied to the
radiator.





An  Adjustable   Steel   Curb   Form.

HIRE is something that concrete con¬
tractors have been looking for. It
is an adjustable steel concrete curb
form. While it is designed especially
for   sidewalk,   curb   and   gutter   work,   it





and at short intervals; the fuel bed kept
level and in good condition by spread¬
ing the fresh coal only over the tliin
places where thc coal tends to burn
awa}' and leave the grate bare. Leveling
or disturbing the fuel bed in any way
should be avoided as much as possible,
as it means more work for the fireman
and causes thc formation of clinker. Fur¬
thermore, while the fireman is leveliti^,^
the fires a large excess of air enters the
furnace,   and   this   impairs   efficiency.

"The ash-pit door should be kept open
and large accumulations of ashes in it
avoided, as it may cause uneven dis¬
tribution of air under the grate. Wlien
a coal shows a tendency to clinker,
water should be kept in the ash pit. All
regulation of draft should be done with
thc damper and not witli the asli-]>it
doors.

"In firing, phice the coal on thc thin
spots of the fuel bed. Thin and thick
spots will occur with the most carc-ful
firing, because the coal never burns at
a uniform rate over the whole grate
area. In places where the air flows
freely through the bed the coal burns
faster than where the flow of air is less.
This variation in the flow of air through
different parts of the fuel bed may be
due to difl^crcnt sizes of coal, accumu¬
lations of clinker, or thc fusing of the
coal into a hard crust. Where the coal
Inirns' rapidly, a thin place forms.

"Before throwing the fresh coal into
thc furnace note thc thin spots, which in
a well-kept fire can usually be recog¬
nized by the bright hot flame; the thick
places showing either a sluggish smoky
flame or none at all. In placing the coal
on the thin places take a rather small
quantity of coal on the scoop, for it is
much easier to place the coal where
M'anted with small shovelfuls. The coal
should also be placed in thin layers, be¬
cause if you fill up the deep hollows in







has many other uses in building con¬
struction such as forming- wheel bases
and making curves in hallways where
reinforced concrete construction is be¬
ing used.

The illustration shows the general
character of the device which is now be¬
ing introduced. It is made of spring
steel curved by a system of turn buck¬
les and can be adjusted to any radius
or a reverse curve. It is said to be as
inexpensive in first cost as a wooden
one and concrete can be laid by it 2.4
cents cheaper per linear foot than by
methods that are now in vogue. The
readiness with which the form can be
set and dismantled permits the con¬
tractor to finish the curved work at the
same time that the straight work is
completed. Another advantage is found
in the fact that in removing the forms
after the concrete has set the danger of
chipping is eliminated because by mere-
Iv unscrewing the curb buckles thc pres¬
sure against the laid work is released
simultaneously.

Hints for Soft Coal Burning-.

WEN burning bituminous coal under
l)Ower plant boilers the best resultfi
arc obtained if the -fires-ar-e kept level
and rather thin, says Technical- Paper
80, entitled "Hand Firiii.s Soft Coal-
Under Power-Plant BoHers," -just
issued by the United-States"-'Bureau* of-"
Mines, as a manual ■ for firemen "em*-
ployed in buildings and industrial estab-'-
lishments.                                   \\ ^ -   -'-■'■

The   best    thickness    is    fmir   t'o ' ten-
inches,   depending   on   the -charact-er   of
the coal and tlic strength of,draft. ."The-
coal -should be fired -in^ small., .<lttai>titie5.





the fuel bed at a single firing, the freshly
fired coal may fuse into a hard crust
and choke the flow of air, causing the
fuel to burn slowly and forming new
thin spots. If the high places in thc
fuel bed are missed on one or two firings
the hard crust at the surface will burn
through or crack, allowing more air to
flow through, and the place will get back
to normal condition."





Heating  Water With  Steam.

LGGKINCi over the housetops of Ncw
York at the waving plumes of steam
arising from a myriad of buildings, one
cannot help being impressed with the
terrific waste that is countenanced by
various industries in this city. Appar¬
ently this is what the head of a great
corporation did recently for he went
back to his home up State and devised
a system for heating water by the steam
that is wasted in large- buildings. Thc
exhaust steam is taken from an engine
and applied in keeping water hot for
tenants,, thus cutting down the fuel bill,
by' getting a double service from thc
steaih generated.





Elevator  Safety  Assured.

BV-the installation of a very simi>lc
■■ - and--'- inexpensive device positive
safety of- "passengers on passe'nger ele¬
vators is assiirfed. 'Liability is made re-
in-ote-'and efficiency in operation may be
expected without menace -to the travel¬
ing  public.

The two cuts presented herewith,
show- the new device in two stages of
o|)er«t-idn  which  is  being introduced  in





this market. It is in the form of an
automatic switch control, which makes
it possible to operate an elevator car
when the door is opened. It has the
distinctive feature of being extremely
simple in operation and minimizes the
number of parts that can get out of or¬
der  in  use.    It  controls  the  entire  ele¬







vator equipment regardless of the size
of the buildings, cars or horse-power of
motors. It can be applied in any elec¬
trically operated elevator, using either
direct or alternating current systems. It
does not interfere with the safety of the
car nor does it in any way alter its op¬
eration. It relieves the operators' bur¬
dens by giving automatic contingencies.
This device has passed an endurance
test of 200,000 operations without any
mechanical adjustments which is equiva¬
lent to two years of hard service. In¬
sulation tests have been as high as 1,000
volts for one consecutive minute with¬
out damage in any particular. It has
been  fully approved by local  boards.

The first cut shows the switch open.
In this position the circuit controlling
the car mechanism is dead and the car
cannot move. The second cut shows the
control latch pushed in, the switch knife
in contact and current at the disposal of







the operator. It is invisible to the av-.
erage observer. Cost of installation . is
low. It is noj. a. Qpnsuroer. 6f^eIectrta
energy^.^.■^^■^% ^yr^ [:-'^r:'^.-::^::::^''^^f