Nothing will take the sticky mud off the wheels and body of a rig
except water. People have at times tried to remove this mud by
scraping, but have found that after the mud has once dried a large
amount of the varnish comes off with it and the “looks” of the carriage
is ruined.
Convenience in washing means that the wagon is pulled just outside of
the barn and quite near the pump or other source of water supply. All
of the carriages are washed in exactly this same spot, and, as this
is done day after day the washing place very shortly becomes nothing
more nor less than a mud hole. To avoid this a concrete floor should be
built.
This floor should be of the size to take not only the wheels of the rig
but the shafts or tongue as well. Unlike feeding and other floors, this
floor is built with a slope toward the center, with a catch basin under
the middle, from which a drain leads. Thus all of the water, together
with the mud coming off the wagon, flows into the basin. This basin
should be protected with a grating, with holes in same not less than ¼
of an inch. This grating should be removable so that the mud, which is
bound to flow into the basin, can be removed. A pipe less than 6 inches
should not be used to connect this basin up with a sewer or ditch
outlet. This will prevent the stoppage of the drain for many years. A
slope from the edges of the floor to the drain of ⅛ of an inch to the
foot should be made. To lay the floor proceed exactly as described in
“Sidewalks,” and, as the floor is exposed to the weather, contraction
joints must be provided, as in Feeding Floors.
After the floor is finished and while the concrete is yet soft, make
grooves in it, running from the basin to the edges of the floor. This
can be done by taking a V-shaped strip of wood and driving it into the
concrete at regular intervals by means of a tamper. This strip of wood
should be thoroughly greased so that it may be removed without having
the concrete stick to its surface.
[Illustration]