Sleeping Porches
One of the most important arrangements for outdoor sleeping is the sleeping porch. To be convenient, it should have an entrance from a bedroom, and, when possible, from a hall; for every outdoor sleeper should have, during cold weather, a warm apartment in connection with his open air sleeping room. The best exposure in Illinois is south, southeast or east. Sleeping out should be a permanent thing during all seasons. The sleeping porch must be kept neat and attractive. A cot placed between the oil can and the washtub on a dingy back porch is very dismal and bound to have a depressing effect on the sleeper.
It costs very little to arrange an ordinary sleeping porch provided you have the porch to begin with. If a porch is fairly deep and sheltered on two sides by an angle of the house, sufficient protection for moderately cold weather can usually be obtained by canvas curtains tacked to wooden rollers. These can be raised and lowered by means of ropes and pulleys, the bed being placed so that the wind will not blow strongly on the patient's head.
Ordinary Porches.[6] A useful porch can be built for $15 to $25 with cheap or second-hand lumber, and if only large enough to receive the bed and a chair will still be effective for the outdoor treatment. The roof can be made with canvas curtain, or a few boards and some tar paper. The end most exposed to the wind and rain and the sides below the railing should be tightly boarded to prevent drafts.
Second or third story porches are supported from the ground by long 4×4-inch posts, or when small they can be held by braces set at an angle from the side of the house. When the long posts are used they are all placed six feet apart and the space between them is divided into three sections by 2×4-inch timbers. The interior is protected by canvas curtains fastened to the roof plate and arranged so as to be raised or lowered by ropes and pulleys. These curtains are made about six feet wide and fit in between the supporting posts and rest against the smaller timbers. This arrangement keeps the curtains firm during a storm, as both rollers and canvas can be securely tied to the frames. This porch would cost between $30 and $50.
Porch de Luxe. When a bed on a porch is not in use it is often unsightly and in the way, while in winter, unless well protected, the bed clothes and bedding become damp. In order to overcome this, the Porch de Luxe[7] has recently been devised. This consists of a low-built bedstead arranged to slide through an opening in the wall of the house between the porch and bedroom.
Sleeping Cabin. To lessen the disadvantages of the high roofed, windy porch, the home-made sleeping cabin is to be recommended. This cabin is built on the porch. The frame is braced against the side of the house and rests on the floor of the porch, but the top of the cabin is much lower than the roof of the porch. The frame consists of 2×4-inch timbers. The sides and roof are of canvas curtains; these can be rolled up separately. Some of these cabins have had the roof hinged so that it can be raised in warm weather. The greatest advantage of the cabin is the control of the weather situation. The cost is $15 to $20.[8]
Knopf's Star-Nook. Another arrangement is Knopf's "Star-nook."[9] This is a wall house supported by the roof of an extension, or on a bracket attached to the wall of the building. This fresh air room consists of a roof, floor and three walls and, with the exception of the roof and the floors, is built of steel frames holding movable shutters. It is nine feet long by six feet deep, the height being
eight feet at the inner side with a fall of two feet. At both ends are windows which can be opened outward. The roof can be raised entirely off the apartment by means of a crank. Also the upper sections of the front windows can be opened or closed. Sometimes new doors or windows will be needed to give access to a desired position. The "Star-nook" can be secured with safety, and when strongly supported there need be no fear in regard to its stability.