FINE BRONZE FOR METALS.
Red aniline (fuchsine), 20 parts; purple aniline, 10 parts; 95 per cent. alcohol, 200 parts; acid benzoic, 10 parts. Dissolve the colors in the spirit in a porcelain vessel in a water or sand bath; add the acid and boil until the mixture changes from a greenish color to a beautiful bronze color. Lay it on the bright metal with a brush.
REPAINTING BLISTERED DOORS.
When the paint commences to blister or scale on a door, it is very liable to keep on blistering and scaling from time to time, as long as any of the old paint is left on the door, no matter how carefully it may be repainted, because in most cases whatever caused the paint to scale off in spots, weakened the entire coat of paint on the door, making it liable to raise up, or come off in other places, whenever exposed to any extra strain, such as sun heat, or the drying of new coats of paint or varnish over it; hence, to have a sure thing on painting a scaled or blistered door, take off all the old paint. Put on a thin prime of pure white lead and linseed oil; use the priming sparingly and rub it out thin; let the prime dry and coat up with lead and oil paint, mixed with good body; put in a little turps and spread the paint out thin, so it will dry solid; rub each coat in the same way; give each coat time to dry solid. For work to be varnished, prime as above, and coat up flat. I think blistering is often caused by flowing on too much paint having too much oil in it, in proportion to the pigment, hence it does not dry solid, the oil is softened and expanded by heat, and the coating, which is more of an oil skin than a body of paint, lets go its hold on the wood and puffs out in a blister to make room for the softened and expanding oil skin. If painters will mix their paint with good body, and use more elbow grease in rubbing it out, they will have less trouble with blisters.
FIREPROOF PAINT FOR ROOFS, ETC.
A recipe published thirty years ago in the Maine Farmer:
Slake stone lime by putting it into a tub to be covered to keep in the steam. When slacked pass the powder through a fine sieve, and to each 6 quarts of it add 1 quart rock salt, and water, 1 gallon; then boil and skim clean. To each five gallons of this add pulverized alum, 1 pound; pulverized copperas, ½ pound; then slowly add powdered potash, ¾ pound; then add hardwood ashes sifted, 4 pounds; now add any color and apply with a brush. This paint stops small leaks in roofs, prevents moss, is incombustible, and renders brick waterproof. It is durable as stone.
VARNISH FOR IRON.
Genuine asphaltum 8 pounds, melt in an iron kettle, slowly adding boiled linseed oil, 5 gallons; litharge, 1 pound, and sulphate of zinc, ½ pound; continue to boil three hours, then add dark gum amber, 1½ pounds, and boil two hours longer. When cool thin with turpentine to good working consistency.