Real  Estate   Record





AND BUILDERS' GUIDE.





Vol. XXI.





NEW YOKK, SATUEDAY, MAECH 30, 1878.





No.  52-





Published Weekly by

TERMS.
ONE VEAU. in advance. ..SIO.OO.
Coinmunications should be addres.sed to

C.  \V.  SWEET.

Nos. 3-15 AXD 3-17 Bno.iu\T.\Y.

THE HYGIENICS OF BUILU1NC4.
IV.

Heati.ng.—There are three methods or cliisses
01 appliance usuallj-- emploj-etl for the purpo.se of
furnishing artificial heat for ■^vanning inodern
buildings. It iiiusfc he ob.^erved that the diU'cr-
eiices between tliciii lie in the apparatus eniplu\cd
and not in the methods, for the .system of nioduni
healing is praclic.-iliy one and the .same, whether
steam, hot waLer, or hot air, be the conducting
ugciit made use of, couibiistion of fuel lying at
the bottom of all. In any of these cases the lliCMi-y
involved is simple and intelligible. It coii.sibts in
lii^aling a given surlace of iron to a liigli ilegree
uf l..iii]ici-aliii-c and then causing to be impinged
iipc.ii this surface a current of cold air led to it by
means ot a duct or set of ducts. After being
lieated upon this iron surface tlio attenuated air
is conveyed tlirough another set of ducts to the
various rooms where it is reipiired. This, in brief,
i.-- a l.iii- slalenient of the modern theory nf heat¬
ing. Tl-.e iiucesiary part whicii it plays in the
ventilatien of buiidings and tho vital con.sidoi-a-
tioii that it usurps the function fif supplying at-
iiiosphcrc for i-cspiratimi toallininatc.s of a bouse,
together render the subject one of priniui-y im¬
portance und worthy of tliouglitful stiuh-.

We will consider tlie various methods of heat¬
ing in detail—

Stk.am AiM'AH.-vTUs.—This consists of a tire-pot
and tubular boiler wherein steam is being con¬
stantly gonerated and supplied to stacks or coils
of pipe called radiators, suitably arranged to re¬
ceive it. T'lipse radiatoi-s may be placed cither
in tho room intended to bo heated, where by
means of direct radiation the atmosphere is loii-
slantlj- heated and re-licated; or, the railiator
may be placed in a box in the cellar at the foot, of
a line of conducting pipe carried up to any giveii
aiiartment or number of accessible rooms. The
cold air ducts or boxes, as thej" are termed, carry
the cold air from the street directlj^ to this coil of
steam pipe. -Vfter being heated the air passes up
the conducting pii»es,and distributes itself through
various openings or registers.

The advantages of steam heating are now fully
recognized. It has this decided superiority over
the hot air furnace, that -svhereas the latter is cir¬
cumscribed in its action to such points as may be
conveniently connected with a central hot-air
chamber, the steam jiipes of the other apparatus
may be carried to au almost uulimited distance
from the boiler and fire-pot, and at remote points
made to do efficient service. Besides when man¬
aged and superintended by a capable engineer
the steam heating apparatus is found to be more
reliable and more easily controlled than any
other. For heating large public buildings, ware¬
houses, depots, hotels, and all structures of the
arger size, it is to-day literally -without a rival.





There arc tv»-.( dilliculties, however, which stand
in flu- way of using tho steam a[)pai-atusin private
dwellings.    The statement of tliu manufactnrci-.s
to the contnii-j-, notwithstaiidiiig, it is indispcn-
.sable that it .should be managed eitlior by an en¬
gineer, or by a person having .some of the tiiialifi-
catioiis of an engineer.   In the abspiici' of such
management, and in the hands of incompetent
licrsons,  this appliance is the source of ii great
deal of annovancc, apprehc-ii.sion and .<;ometiiiics
serious accident.   Boilers have been known to ex¬
plode, nnd tho steam in the pipe coils, through
lack of continuous .supply, has been known tocoii-
dimseinto water and then to congeal iuto ice,
through the action of cold draughts of air on the
coil, thii.s preparing the w-ay for the biii-.stiiig of
the pipe as soon as the apparatus is started again
in full motion.   The eu.st of these appliances also
operates   against their general use  for private
dwellings and conseinienth" we are apt to iiud
them only in the nian.sionsof the wealthy.   When
used in dwelling houses the method of direct rad¬
iation—tliat is tho introduction of the radiating
pipes into the room that is to be warnu'd- acts
unlavorably iu three wavi^.    It churns over and
over again the same air which is constantly being
polluted with the products of respiration; besides
it extracts all moisture from tho air and produces
a ilry ami .snllocating atinosiiiiere; aiidfinailj- the
clanking of tlie radiators is e.-pecially annoying
to nervous and sen.siti\ e perMias, and during the
niglit liccoines the revei-.-e of .soporilic.     Even
when these coils of pipe are placed in the cellar,
there is tliesameserioiisob.jeetion of a dry atmos¬
phere.    .-Vt times the coii.s  become heated to so
high a temperature .ts tofat.iHy parch and vitiate
even the fresh air brought  in  from  tho street.
To render .steam heating popular and .serviceable
in domestic use some method must be devised of
imparting moisture to the air that has been heat¬
ed over the steam coil.-^.

HOT-vvATEK AWAU.vrLS.—The j.rincipie.s    of
this appliance are .so closely allied to those of
steam that iu describing one we may .sity we de
scribe the other     In the hot-water apparatus the
boiler answers the purpose of a large caldron or
teakettle in which the water is allowed to reach
the boiling point, but isrestrainetl from expansion
into vapor.    What little .steam is generated by
this process is quickly condensed again.   Tho hot
water is introduced under  iiressure into   coils
placed at 1 he foot of conducting pipe.s, and cold
air is led against the coils aud introduced into the
dwelling in precisely the same manner as de¬
scribed in the previous section.    The serious ob¬
jection to tiiis form of lieatiii.g is the dillicult}' of
maintaining the temperature of the water at or
near the boiling point after the pipes which con¬
tain it hav9 beeu exposed for a length of time to
outside atmosphere at a low temperature. Having
one stage less to pass through than steam, the re¬
duction of the temperature of this  water to the
freezing point is a comparative ly eiusy matter,
and in practice the water in these pipes is found
to be quickly aud readily chilled aud at proper
temperature reduced to ice.

We are not aware that this mode of heating is
either popular or satisfactorj-. The gj-eatest and
the only merit ever claimed for it is that it
presents a moderately heated surface to tbe in¬
coming cold air, and in consequence only gently





vvitiioiit e.vtraeting frr>m it L-Ithei
any "f it.s other life sustaining jirop
in n variai.le climate like this, s'libjc'i





l(.*mper> II

iiKiisture or

.'i-tie..:.   lUi(

tu cyeies oft-.Ktreiiieiy cold teniperaiure. it is tpiite

tK-ee.ssai y < > h;ue a radianng .>urf.-ice for he.-itin;;

luirposo v.iiic:i  is capable of  lieing rcaiiily tn!-

justed lo ..•iiinaiie variatioii«.

H(n---\ii: Fi:f.NACi«.—The fi.xtui-e Ui.it i.-< mosi
accejMai..!e and inure uiiivt-r.s.-dly used is the hot-
air furn.-ic'.    Devices of thi.s kind arc literally
legion ill miuiber.    Abno.st e-.ery plunibei-, r^tovi-
niaker aiiil   wliitesniitli   who ever ro--'.' lo aii>-
tlignitj-ill the in-ofe.-.>io;i sr-.-in  to have exerci.-e.i
their ingemiitv in devising  .«iOiiio hot-air   appa¬
ratus for heating,   iu contradistinction  to the
sleani apparatus the hot-air method is adiiiii-.*ibl\-
suited for tho heating   uf   domestic   bniitiings.
though it is ijiiite inadttiiuit'- or fails entiiely to
answer the pur.use in large hniidiiig.s, or tur ih*-
heatiiiguf .-pat escf e.-ctraoniinary ciil-iciil .:in;t u
sioiLS.     All liot-air furnnee^ are eonstructed upui:
verj- much   the   samr>  inoilel.    Nearlj- all pat
terns .ti-e iii-eseiUed   in vi hat is called the jiort-
ablc   shape, which means that   the furnace   is
niereh- enclosed in a covering of galvanized iron
iii.stead of brick work. The objection to this st>-le
of furnace  is that  ii  is apt to draw itsairfor
transmii.sion to.the dwelling from the cellur—a
C(.iiiditioii   which should   ne\er   be toler.atid or
saiictionev.1. „^Vhen  llie.se jiortalilc or iron-ca.sed
furnaces arc used tiicy should be supplied with
cold .-lir !>\' an air dtn-t or l,ox  from outside, and
the atiiio.-iihere and gast-> of tie*  ci-liar should be
studiously ercchided  frinu   th'-ni.    Tho   regular
hou.se furnace is usiwilv encio-ed v.-illiin walls of
brickwork.    Tiiis is done fur ih<' !mi[io.-e of con
fiuiug till!  heat •.vi'Jiiu  Li'-  e.jre of   t!ie furnace
structure and fur more coiaiiletely e.xcliiding the
deleterioi-s ga.se.s oj" ihe cellar ami for protection
agahist the ignition of adjaceui wood work.    Tlie
furnace proper, to wit., the iron structure itself, is
enclosed within a brick dome called the hot-air
chamber. This dome, or chamber, is al.so eiu-losed
at adi.staiice of si.>c or eight niches, w-ithin foiir
outside  walls   carried   to   within a foot of the
ceiling.   The si;.!i(re between the brick dome and
the outside walls of the furnace might be called
the cold air cliainber or continuation of the cold
airduns, as into this the cald air box delivers its
supplj- of fresh air from outdoors;.     The enld aii-
than drops bj- its gravitj- to the lowest point in
this air space, and  is   sucked into  the h.ot  air
chamber through openings left at the foot of the
dome enclosure lor this purpose.   The   hot  air
piyes intendefi to carry  the heated atmosiihero
into the dwelling   penetrate   directly  through
the outside walls, aud tho cold air space into the
domo or interior enclosure.   As fast as the air is
sucked iuto the hot air chamber it becomes heated
to   a    high   temperature   and  volatilized,   ris¬
ing bj- its own buoyancj- through these hot air
ducts into the several chambers where it is re¬
quired.

In most of these furnaces a pan supplied w-ith
water is placed in the hot-air chamber, and a
steadj- evaporation of its contents is effected,
causing a mechanical mixture of moisture with
the heated air to supplj- the place of that w hich
may have been abstracted from tlie natural
atmosphere in the operation of heating.
In brief outline this is a fall delineation of