The common size for tank is eight barrels capacity. It should be constructed of inch-and-three-quarters ploughed and tongued material with two three-eighths inch rods, with bolts and nuts at each end, and cleats across top and bottom in middle. The inside should be lined with four-pound sheet lead; that is, sheet lead which weighs four pounds to the foot. There should be an inch tell-tale pipe of galvanized iron which connects with the sink nearest the pump. Sometimes an overflow which runs to the roof is used, in which case a smaller tell-tale, say one-half inch in diameter, will serve. There are instances where the tank in the attic is connected with a special gutter on the roof, above the line of the tank. Then the tank is provided with a large overflow so that it may not cause trouble. However, this is a little risky. The tank is connected with the hot and cold water system and fixtures subsequently named.
The hot-water system is as simple as it is efficient. Usually a heavy-pressure galvanized-iron boiler, of from twenty-four to sixty-two gallons capacity, is located in the kitchen. It is connected with the tank by means of five-eighths-inch lead or three-quarters-inch iron pipe, and with fixtures subsequently named as being supplied with hot water in the same manner. The water is heated in the range by means of a water back or water front placed in the fire-box of the range. It is connected with the boiler by means of five-eighths-inch lead and three-quarters-inch iron pipe. One pipe from the lower part of the boiler takes the water to the back. The other carries it to the top of the boiler, the cold water naturally going to the bottom and the hot water passing to the top. The hot-water supply for fixtures is drawn from the top of the boiler. Any one may notice, by passing the hand up and down a boiler of this kind, that the top is always warmer than the bottom. Sometimes a wrought-iron pipe is used in a stove in lieu of a water back. It usually answers the same purpose, though its heating surface is not so great. It is best to use a pipe back where the boiler is not connected with soft water. The incrustation from the lime is such that the back soon becomes filled, and it is much more expensive to replace than one made of pipe. When the hot water is from the city water works, the supply is usually directly therefrom rather than from a tank in the attic. However, it is not uncommon to have a tank supply in the house where public-water supply is taken to the exclusion of all other, and it is a better system, though a little more expensive. The hot-water reservoir is usually placed on an iron stand near the stove. It should be provided with a draining connection for the purpose of drawing out all the water when desired. A vent connection from the reservoir to the tank in attic, or, in the event of no tank being used, to the roof above, is common as a guard against extra steam pressure.
SOIL PIPE.
Before considering other inside fixtures and fittings, the soil pipe should be mentioned. It is of cast-iron, light weight, and, when it is connected with a water-closet, should be four inches in diameter on the inside, and japanned inside and out. Joints are made at the hubs, and should be leaded and well calked. Connections with this pipe should be made by means of Y’s of proper size, depending on the size of the drain which connects therewith. The soil pipe should continue upward and through the roof to a point at least four feet above the nearest ridge. Below, it should continue outside of the foundation wall to connect with the drain. Where there is a sink in the cellar, the soil pipe should be below the cellar floor. Vitrified or earthenware drain pipe should never be used inside the walls of a house.
INSIDE FIXTURES.
The kitchen sink may be considered first. They are usually of light cast-iron. Sometimes they are of pressed steel; again, they are of cast-iron with an interior porcelain finish. If a common cast-iron sink is painted, the paint soon wears off. The ideal sink, the one which is the best in every way, is of porcelain. It has the white, glazed surface of a fine dish, and is easily cleaned. Any kitchen sink should be eighteen inches wide, six inches deep, and from twenty-four to thirty-six inches in length. Thirty or thirty-six is the best. They are provided with a strainer in the bottom, and have one-and-one-half-inch light lead “S” trap connection with soil pipe or grease sink, subsequently considered. Where city water is at hand, the sink should be supplied through a five-eighths-inch brass or nickel-plated self-closing cock. Where the city water is hard, hot and cold cistern water in addition to city water should be supplied through five-eighths-inch brass or nickel-plated compression cocks. If the hot water is from the public water works, a self-closing cock should be used. All cocks should be screwed to a soldered nipple, and not “wiped” or joined directly to the lead pipe. In this way, it is not necessary to wipe a joint every time the cock gives out. A smaller sink, size as desired, may be used in the china-closet or butler’s pantry. Such a sink is not in common use excepting in the more expensive houses.
The cellar sink should be sixteen by sixteen inches, ten inches deep, and should be provided with strainer, and an inch-and-a-half light lead “S” trap connection with soil pipe. If city supply only is desired, it may be had through five-eighths-inch brass self-closing cock. Where connection is made with cistern, it may be by means of one-and-one-half inch pipe and a cast-iron pitcher pump; if not this, a well, driven or otherwise, may be similarly connected by means of a pitcher or lift pump. This cellar sink is the kind that may be used in connection with the laundry previously described. Where stationary tubs are used, this sink is not necessary.