=Plumbing Fixtures=
The receptacles or fixtures within the house for receiving the waste
and excrementitious matter and carrying it off through the pipes to
the sewer are very important parts of house plumbing. Great care must
be bestowed upon the construction, material, fitting, etc., of the
plumbing fixtures, that they be a source of comfort in the house
instead of becoming a curse to the occupants.
=Sinks.=--The waste water from the kitchen is disposed of by means of
sinks. Sinks are usually made of cast iron, painted, enameled, or
galvanized. They are also made of wrought iron, as well as of
earthenware and porcelain. Sinks must be set level, and provided with
a strainer at the outlet to prevent large particles of kitchen refuse
from being swept into the pipe and obstructing it. If possible the
back and sides of a sink should be cast from one piece; the back and
sides, when of wood, should be covered by nonabsorbent material, to
prevent the wood from becoming saturated with waste water.[18] No
woodwork should inclose sinks; they should be supported on iron legs
and be open beneath and around. The trap of a sink is usually two
inches in diameter, and should be near the sink; it should have a
screw cap for cleaning and inspection, and the branch vent pipe should
be at the crown of the trap.
=Washbasins.=--Washbasins are placed in bathrooms, and, when properly
constructed and fitted, are a source of comfort. They should not be
located in bedrooms, and should be open, without any woodwork around
them. The washbowls are made of porcelain or marble, with a socket at
the outlet, into which a plug is fitted.
=Wash Tubs.=--For laundry purposes wooden, iron-enameled, stone, and
porcelain tubs are fitted in the kitchen or laundry room. Porcelain is
the best material, although very expensive. The soapstone tub is the
next best; it is clean, nonabsorbent, and not too expensive. Wood
should never be used, as it soon becomes saturated, is foul, leaks,
and is offensive. In old houses, wherever there are wooden tubs, they
should be covered with zinc or some nonabsorbent material. The wash
tubs are placed in pairs, sometimes three in a row, and they are
generally connected with one lead waste pipe one and a half to two
inches in diameter, with one trap for all the tubs.
=Bath Tubs.=--Bath tubs are made of enameled iron or porcelain, and
should not be covered or inclosed by any woodwork. The branch waste
pipe should be trapped and connected with the main waste or soil
pipe. The floor about the tub in the bathroom should be of
nonabsorbent material.[19]
=Refrigerators.=--The waste pipes of refrigerators should not connect
with any of the house pipes, but should be emptied into a basin or
pail; or, if the refrigerator is large, its waste pipe should be
conducted to the cellar, where it should discharge into a properly
trapped, sewer-connected and water-supplied open sink.
=Boilers.=--The so-called sediment pipe from the hot-water boiler in
the kitchen should be connected with the sink trap at the inlet side
of the trap.
=Urinals.=--As a rule, no urinals should be tolerated within a house;
they are permissible only in factories and office buildings. The
material is enameled iron or porcelain. They must be provided with a
proper water supply to flush them.
=Overflows.=--To guard against overflow of washbasins, bath tubs,
etc., overflow pipes from the upper portion of the fixtures are
commonly provided. These pipes are connected with the inlet side of
the trap of the same fixture. They are, however, liable to become a
nuisance by being obstructed with dirt and not being constantly
flushed; whenever possible they should be dispensed with.
=Safes and Wastes.=--A common usage with plumbers in the past has
been to provide sinks, washbasins, bath tubs, and water-closets, not
only with overflow pipes, but also with so-called safes, which consist
of sheets of lead turned up several inches at the edge so as to catch
all drippings and overflow from fixtures; from these safes a drip pipe
or waste is conducted to the cellar, where it empties into a sink. Of
course, when such safe wastes are connected with the soil or waste
pipes, they become a source of danger, even if they are trapped, as
they are not properly cared for or flushed; and their traps are
usually not sealed. Even when discharging into a sink in the cellar,
safes and safe waste are very unsightly, dirty, liable to accumulate
filth, and are offensive. With open plumbing, and with the floors
under the fixtures of nonabsorbent material, they are useless.
=Water-closets.=--The most important plumbing fixtures within the
house are the water-closets. Upon the proper construction and location
of the water-closets greatly depends the health of the inhabitants of
the house. Water-closets should be placed in separate, well-lighted,
perfectly ventilated, damp-proof, and clean compartments, and no
water-closet should be used by more than one family in a tenement
house. The type and construction of the water-closets should be
carefully attended to, as the many existing, old, and obsolete types
of water-closets are still being installed in houses, or are left
there to foul the air of rooms and apartments. There are many
water-closets on the market, some of which will be described; the
best are those made of one piece, of porcelain or enameled
earthenware, and so constructed as always to be and remain clean.
[Illustration: FIG. 24.
PAN WATER-CLOSET. (GERHARD.)]
_The Pan Closet._--The water-closet most commonly used in former times
was a representative of the group of water-closets with mechanical
contrivances. This is the _pan closet_, now universally condemned and
prohibited from further use. The pan closet consists of four principal
parts: (1) basin of china, small and round; (2) a copper six-inch pan
under the basin; (3) a large iron container, into which the basin with
the pan under it is placed; and (4) a D trap, to which the container
is joined. The pan is attached with a lever to a handle, which, when
pulled, moves the pan; this describes a half circle and drops the
contents into the container and trap. The objections to pan closets
are the following:
(1) There being a number of parts and mechanical contrivances, they
are liable to get out of order.
(2) The bowl is set into the container and cannot be inspected, and is
usually very dirty beneath.
(3) The pan is often missing, gets out of order, and is liable to be
soiled by adhering excreta.
(4) The container is large, excreta adhere to its upper parts, and the
iron becomes corroded and coated with filth.
(5) With every pull of the handle and pan, foul air enters rooms.
(6) The junctions between the bowl and container, and the container
and trap, are usually not gas-tight.
(7) The pan breaks the force of the water flush, and the trap is
usually not completely emptied.
_Valve and Plunger Closets_ are an improvement upon the pan closets,
but are not free from several objections enumerated above. As a rule,
all water-closets with mechanical parts are objectionable.
_Hopper Closets_ are made of iron or earthenware. Iron hopper closets
easily corrode; they are usually enameled on the inside. Earthenware
hoppers are preferable to iron ones. Hopper closets are either long or
short; when long, they expose a very large surface to be fouled,
require a trap below the floor, and are, as a rule, very difficult to
clean or to keep clean. Short hopper closets are preferable, as they
are easily kept clean and are well flushed. When provided with
flushing rim, and with a good water-supply cistern and large supply
pipe, the short hopper closet is a good form of water-closet.
The washout and washdown water-closets are an improvement upon the
hopper closets. They are manufactured from earthenware or porcelain,
and are so shaped that they contain a water seal, obviating the
necessity of a separate trap under the closet.
[Illustration: FIG. 25.
LONG HOPPER WATER-CLOSET. (GERHARD.)]
[Illustration: FIG. 26.
SHORT HOPPER WATER-CLOSET. (GERHARD.)]
[Illustration: FIG. 27.
STYLES OF WATER-CLOSETS.]
_Flush Tanks._--Water-closets must not be flushed directly from the
water-supply pipes, as there is a possibility of contaminating the
water supply. Water-closets should be flushed from flush tanks, either
of iron or of wood, metal lined; these cisterns should be placed not
less than four feet above the water-closet, and provided with a
straight flush pipe of at least one and one-quarter inch diameter.
The cistern is fitted with plug and handle, so that by pulling at the
handle the plug is lifted out of the socket of the cistern and the
contents permitted to rush through the pipe and flush the
water-closet. A separate ball arrangement is made for closing the
water supply when the cistern is full. The cistern must have a
capacity of at least three to five gallons of water; the flush pipe
must have a diameter of not less than one and one-quarter inch, and
the pipe must be straight, without bends, and the arrangement within
the closets such as to flush all parts of the bowl at the same time.
[Illustration: FIG. 28.
FLUSHING CISTERN.]
=Yard Closets.=--In many old houses the water-closet accommodations
are placed in the yard. There are two forms of these yard closets
commonly used--the school sink and the yard hopper.
The _school sink_ is an iron trough from five to twelve or more feet
long, and one to two feet wide and one foot deep, set in a trench
several feet below the surface with an inclination toward the exit; on
one end of the trough there is a socket fitted with a plug, and on the
other a flushing apparatus consisting simply of a water service-pipe.
Above the iron trough brick walls are built up, inclosing it; over it
are placed wooden seats, and surrounding the whole is a wooden shed
with compartments for every seat. The excreta are allowed to fall into
the trough, which is partly filled with water, and once a day, or as
often as the caretaker chooses, the plug is pulled up and the excreta
allowed to flow into the sewer with which the school sink is
connected. These school sinks are, as a rule, a nuisance, and are
dangerous to health. The objections to them are the following:
(1) The excreta lies exposed in the iron trough, and may decompose
even in one day; and it is always offensive.
(2) The iron trough is easily corroded.
(3) The iron trough, being large, presents a large surface for
adherence of excreta.
(4) The brickwork above the trough is not flushed when the school sink
is emptied, and excreta, which usually adheres to it, decomposes,
creating offensive odors.
(5) The junction of the iron trough with the brickwork, and the
brickwork itself, is usually defective, or becomes defective, and
allows foul water and sewage to pass into the yard, or into the wall
adjacent to the school sink. By the Tenement House Law of New York,
the use of school sinks is prohibited even in old buildings.
[Illustration: FIG. 29.
SCHOOL SINK AFTER SEVERAL MONTHS' USE.
(J. SULLIVAN.)]
_Yard Hopper Closets._--Where the water-closet accommodations cannot,
for some reason, be put within the house, yard hopper closets are
commonly employed. These closets are simply long, iron-enameled
hoppers, trapped, and connected with a drain pipe discharging into
the house drain. These closets are flushed from cisterns, but, in such
case, the cisterns must be protected from freezing; this is
accomplished in some houses by putting the yard hopper near the house
and placing the cistern within the house; however, this can hardly be
done where several hoppers must be employed. In most cases, yard
hoppers are flushed by automatic rod valves, so constructed as to
flush the bowl of the hopper whenever the seat is pressed upon. These
valves, as a rule, frequently get out of order and leak, and care must
be taken to construct the vault under the hopper so that it be
perfectly water-tight. An improved form of yard hopper has been
suggested by Inspector J. Sullivan, of the New York Health Department,
and used in a number of places with complete satisfaction. The
improvement consists in the doors and walls of the privy apartment
being of double thickness, lined with builders' lining on the inside,
and the water service-pipes and cistern being protected by felt or
mineral wool packing.
[Illustration: FIG. 30.
J. SULLIVAN'S IMPROVED YARD HOPPER CLOSET.]
[Illustration: FIG. 31.
A MODERN WATER-CLOSET.
(J. L. Mott Iron Works.)]
=Yard and Area Drains.=--The draining of the surface of the yard or
other areas is done by tile or iron pipes connecting with the sewer or
house drain in the cellar. The "bell" or the "lip" traps are to be
condemned and should not be used for yard drains. The gully and trap
should be made of one piece; the trap should be of the siphon type and
should be deep enough in the ground to prevent the freezing of seal in
winter.
FOOTNOTES:
[18] Waterproof paint or tiling should be used for this
purpose.--EDITOR.
[19] Tiling, linoleum, concrete, etc., as opposed to wood or
carpets.--EDITOR.