Type of Equipment
The essential features to be considered in connection with the design and installation of equipment are sanitation, freedom from nuisance and selection of proper apparatus for economical operation.
Very definite conclusions have been reached by experts and officials about the kind of ash can to be used. It is agreed that the size must be limited because of the difficulty of lifting heavy receptacles into the collecting wagon. Workman’s compensation insurance for city employees has forced cities to give more attention to this part of the equipment than previously for the reason that many employees are injured by straining. It is also agreed that the receptacles must be of metal or lined with metal to prevent fire from hot ashes. All receptacles, if left at the curb, should be covered to prevent dust.
Some cities require householders to use regulation size cans. It is asserted that this plan facilitates the collection. The attached tables contain a description of the type and size of can used.
There has been much discussion about the best type of wagon for ash collection, and much experimenting has been done and is still commanding attention. It is agreed that special attention must be given to ease in loading and emptying, to provision against leakage, dust and unsightly appearance, to noise when loading and in motion, to durability and to cost of maintenance. As a considerable portion of the men employed in collecting suffer strains and rupture caused by lifting heavy cans, it is imperative that the wagon be as low as possible. Most of those now in use are five feet or more from the sidewalk to the top of the sides. If the bodies of these wagons hung low, as they do in some cities, and the capacity were made up in length, there would be less strain on the men and time would be saved in dumping.
The capacity of the wagon is influenced by the length of haul and topography of the city. In its study of the collection and disposal of waste in Ohio cities the Ohio State Board of Health says it is the consensus of opinion that for best economic results the wagon capacity should be from three to four cubic yards for the combined collection of ashes and rubbish. The average weight of rubbish and ashes is from 800 to 1100 pounds per cubic yard, according to some reports. H. DeB. Parsons, a sanitary expert, says the average weight of ashes per cubic yard is 1350 pounds and rubbish 200 pounds. Generally the mixture in summer is 35 per cent. ashes and 65 per cent. rubbish; in winter 75 per cent. ashes and 25 per cent. rubbish.
Until recently practically all of New York City’s ash carts carried approximately one ton. The point was made that with this type of vehicle there is a great loss of time in carrying the load to the dump and returning empty. William H. Edwards, former Commissioner of Street Cleaning, claimed that there would be a greater saving if five-ton vehicles drawn by three horses and operated by four men were used. Mr. Edwards said that a test had proved that six cartloads could be collected and dumped in just about twice the time it took for one cartload under the conditions existing then. The city is now experimenting with motor apparatus designed for dustless and odorless collection of all kinds of refuse.
In a few cities one type of wagon is used for ashes and another type for rubbish. One new type of wagon has the body swung low on running gear, with dumping edges three feet, six inches above the pavement, and is pivoted at one end to facilitate dumping. It holds nine cubic yards and is divided by cross partitions into compartments, one for ashes and the other for garbage. The relative capacity of the compartments can be varied. Some of the types used in American cities are described in the accompanying tables.
Some American and German cities are using, and others are considering the purchase and use of, motor trucks for collection purposes. It is generally agreed that motor trucks are economical only where the haul is long. A discussion of the merits of motor vehicles as compared with horse drawn carts will be found in the chapter on garbage collection. In some cities where the haul to the loading stations is long, trucks with detachable bodies are used for garbage, ashes and rubbish. The bodies are lifted by derricks from the truck and placed either on the train or on the trolley cars. In a few other cities horse-drawn wagons are taken to a central point in a district and then as trailers are hauled by tractors to the dumping grounds. The best system to be adopted depends entirely upon local conditions.