Effect of Stimulative Paint. Manufacturer’s Trade Mark Stencilled on Bare Metal in Triangular Form, showing Through Subsequent Paint Coating
Panel No. 51—Black Magnetic Oxide of Iron. In excellent condition.
CHAPTER XVII
THE SANITARY VALUE OF WALL PAINTS
Decoration and Sanitation. The proper decoration of the interior of dwellings and public buildings has become of even greater importance than the protection and decoration of exteriors. There is, moreover, an increasing demand for harmonious effects and the production of more sanitary conditions than have prevailed in the past. Up until a few years ago a great variety of wall papers of more or less pleasing appearance were almost exclusively used for the decoration of walls in the interior of buildings, and their application was commonly considered the most effective means of wall decoration. There seems to be no question, however, that the use of wall paper is steadily decreasing, and that the art of interior decoration is undergoing a transition to the almost universal use of paint.
Modern progress demands the maintenance of sanitary conditions for the benefit of the public welfare, and there is no doubt that from the standpoint of sanitation and hygiene, properly painted wall surfaces are far superior to papered walls. There is an abundance of evidence which shows that dust germs may easily be harbored, and thus disease transmitted from wall paper. In the tenement houses, which are common to the larger cities, and to a lesser extent in the dwellings found in smaller communities, where tenants are more or less transient, the continued maintenance of sanitary conditions presents a difficult problem. Infectious and epidemic illnesses generally leave behind bacilli of different types, which may find a culture medium in the fibrous and porous surfaces presented by wall paper, backed up as they invariably must be by starch, casein, or other organic pastes. Occasionally the restrictions of local boards of health provide in such events for proper fumigation, but too often no precautions are taken to destroy the disease germs which are caught in the dust which collects on wall paper. As a rule, both tenant and landlord are oblivious to all conditions which cannot be readily seen or detected. Burning sulphur, one of the most effective means of fumigation, will generally cause bleaching and consequent fading of the delicate colors used in printing the designs upon wall paper. Washing of the paper with antiseptic solutions will destroy its adhesiveness to the plaster and often cause bulging and general destruction.
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| Heavy Colonies of Bacteria Developing inAgar Jelly Treated with Washings fromWall Paper | Practically no Development of BacterialColonies in Agar Jelly Treated withWashings from Sanitary Wall Paint |