Part 144

_Hot Baths._--Concerning the bathroom, Edis remarks that whenever a bath is provided, it is generally left open, and forms a receptacle for dirt and dust, which is not always cleaned out when the bath is filled. He suggests that the bath be slightly lowered into the floor, and fitted with a hinged top, about seat-high from the floor, so as to keep the bath clear of dirt, and when not in use make it answer as a table or seat. A bathroom is often fitted up with cupboards for linen, and if the hot-water cistern be placed in the room on the floor level, or sufficiently high for use, or a coil of hot-water pipes be carried through, the linen cupboard with lattice shelves might easily be fitted over it, with closed doors of course, by which the linen would always be kept properly aired; and if the room be lined with tiles, there would be no fear of damp or moisture from steam condensing on the walls. The bath should be formed in a recess, with tile lining all round and overhead, and the recess might then be fitted with cupboards over, and drawers and useful shelves at one end, so as to provide storage-room for a large amount of spare clothing and linen, which it is often so difficult to find room for. A curtain drawn across the bath keeps it clean, and hides it from view when not immediately required.

_Hot-air and Vapour Baths_, _Turkish Baths_, _&c._--The _Lancet_ expresses a strong objection to that form of bath which involves the patient being in an erect or sitting posture, where the bath is used to produce perspiration; it is always possible that some amount of faintness or giddiness may be experienced by the bather even when the blanket or tent-shaped envelope is so effectively applied as to prevent the fumes rising to the mouth and being inspired. It is always far better, and ought to be a rule, that the patient should be in the recumbent position. With a properly constructed cradle-head, the bed-clothes can be raised and the lamp placed safely in the bed itself, the clothes being well tucked in round the neck and under the chin, so that nothing may reach the mouth. In this way the patient may enjoy the full benefit of a fairly high temperature without the least fear of faintness. There are, nevertheless, certain precautions which ought to be observed, and which are too commonly overlooked. (_a_) A thermometer with a long stem ought to be so placed that the bulb may be inside the clothes and the indicator-column visible outside. Such a thermometer might with advantage be supplied with the bath. It is always desirable to know the temperature of the atmosphere to which the patient is subjected. (_b_) The moment perspiration is induced there arises the question--How far ought it to be carried? If the purpose of the bath be to eliminate fluid or any product of tissue-waste from the body, there may be a need for the maintenance of the cutaneous perspiration for some time: but otherwise it is not, generally speaking, well to let the patient remain in the heat for more than 10 minutes; otherwise, the result can only be to saturate the bed-clothes with moisture, which will begin to cool as soon as the lamp is removed, and after the lapse of 20-30 minutes must place the patient in the perilous position of lying, perhaps sleeping, in a damp bed. A hot-air bath for ordinary purposes is better given in the morning than at night; or, if that be impossible, the patient should be removed to a dry bed with hot blankets. The body-heat can never be safely trusted to keep the clothes, which have been saturated with moisture by a bath, warm after the lamp is withdrawn. It is quite a different matter when the perspiration has been raised by the heat of the body itself. As a rule, the patient should be removed and wiped dry in about 20 minutes after the withdrawal of the lamp--that is, in ½ hour from the commencement of the bath. If the perspiration be acid, it is desirable to sponge the surface with hot water, in which about 1 dessertspoonful soda carbonate has been dissolved--say, in 1 qt. water. (_c_) If the case be one of rheumatism or gout, it must be recognised that by determining to the skin we are likely to get increased stiffness and surface irritation after each bath until the excrementitious material has been thoroughly eliminated. Overlooking this fact, patients, and sometimes practitioners, fail to persevere long enough with the baths, because, as it seems, each bath makes matters worse.

A simple form of hot-air or steam-bath for home use may be made as follows:--To the back of an ordinary wooden or cane-bottom chair fix an upright piece of wood, and to this at the height at which the neck of the sitter on the chair will be fix a hoop of cane or other material sufficiently wide to keep the cloth to hang from the hoop free from the shoulders of the sitter. Place beneath the chair a gas or oil lamp or two, if one does not give sufficient heat. If, now, a cloth be fixed round the ring sufficiently ample to reach the ground and close all round the sitter, a tent will be formed from the top of which the head of the sitter will project. Let the cloth overlap the ring freely, so as to permit of being pulled close to the sitter’s neck. Whilst taking this hot-air bath, the feet must be kept in a basin of warm water. If there is danger of a headache, a cold wet cloth on the head will prevent it. If a vapour bath is preferred, place a pan of water over the lamp, so that the water may boil.

Ellis & Co., of 47 Farringdon Road, London, have introduced a Cabinet Turkish Bath, which dispenses with chair, lamp, sheets, and covers. It is exceedingly simple, and consists of a neat cabinet (Fig. 127) made of well-seasoned wood, taking up a floor space of only 2 ft. 5 in. by 2 ft. 8 in., and large enough to admit the person comfortably. It is mounted upon castors, so that it may easily be moved from place to place on the same floor; and it is light enough to be carried if required. It is fitted with a foot-warmer, and with an adjustable seat, so that it can be used by children and by adults of different sizes. A book-rest is arranged conveniently, so that the time may be pleasantly occupied, and small doors are provided through which the hands may be passed in order to turn over the leaves of a book, or to wipe the face, or to remove a cigar from the mouth, &c. The bath is heated by gas, or by a special lamp in which spirit is burned. It may be managed with the greatest ease without the aid of an attendant, being, in fact, quite as simple as an ordinary sponge or sitz bath. It is only necessary to fill the foot-warmer with hot water, covering it with a piece of flannel, to light the lamp, and step into the bath with a towel round the neck to prevent the heat escaping too readily. Ample ventilation is allowed, so that the body is not exposed to the action of vitiated air, since this is constantly being renewed from outside. The bath constitutes, in fact, a small ventilated hot chamber, the time spent in which may vary from 10 minutes to ½ hour, according to pleasure. The prices of this bath range from 5_l._ 10_s._, as made in best pine, to 9_l._, in black walnut.

MANAGEMENT OF HOT-WATER SYSTEM.

Before entering into the details of the management of a hot-water system destined to supply baths, &c., it will be desirable to acquaint the reader with the general plan and principle of an apparatus, and to explain the cause of circulation, &c., as this will convey some idea of the subject to be treated, for although many possess an apparatus fitted in their residences, yet much practical information cannot be gained from it, as a major portion of the work is hidden from view.

Figs. 128 and 129 show two distinct forms of apparatus, both of which are at present in general use, and both of which even now nearly equally share the public favour, although No. 1 is the more modern and has been proved to be practically superior to No. 2, and is now nearly exclusively adopted by most firms who profess this work.

No. 1 is known as the cylinder system, and consists of a cylinder (a square tank is sometimes used where the pressure of water is light, tanks costing much less than cylinders of the same capacity) which is placed at the nearest position to, but above the level of the boiler. Two pipes connect the boiler with the cylinder, the upper pipe a is termed the “flow,” and is carried from the upper surface of the boiler to about 9 in. up the nearest side of the cylinder as shown, and the lower pipe _b_, known as the “return,” is carried from a lower position in the cylinder, under the “flow,” to within about 3 in. from the bottom of the boiler, either through the top, as shown, or entering at the back or side.

From the highest point in the cylinder is carried a pipe c, called the “rising main,” by the nearest or most convenient route to above the level of the cold-water cistern, and terminates either by being carried through the roof (as shown) or by being turned over the top of the cistern referred to (as shown in dotted lines). This pipe, when the apparatus is in use, is charged with water to a little above the level of the cold water in the cistern, and the pipe is open at the top end to admit of the free escape of steam, and on that account is sometimes called the expansion pipe; from this pipe is, or should be carried _all_ the draw-off services to the various points at which they are required. In event of this rising main being carried to a considerable distance or height, it should be “returned” from any convenient point below the cold cistern (as shown in dotted lines at _d_); this will cause the water to circulate in this upper service and avoid the annoyance and waste caused by drawing sometimes a large quantity of cold water (which lies stagnant in single pipes) before the hot water is obtained. When this “return” is effected, the service is known as the “secondary flow and return.”

Another good use to which the return can be put is in event of any draw-off services being unusually long, as that shown at _m_ to the dressing-room in the illustration, the return can be connected as shown in dotted lines, and will bring about the same good results as explained in “returning” the rising main.

The supply of cold water to the apparatus is either brought by a direct and distinct service from the cistern, or is branched from the nearest existing cold service, but in the latter case the existing service must be of good size, for reasons that will be explained later on. The cold supply should be provided with a stop tap _f_, which is found most convenient if placed near the cylinder, as it can then be used by workmen or others without their having to traverse the house, but this tap should have a loose key or handle, which should be kept by some responsible person to prevent its being interfered with by any one ignorant of its use. There should be also a tap provided at a convenient point, say _g_, to empty the cylinder when the boiler requires to be cleaned or any repairs effected, and this tap should have a loose key for the reasons before stated.

The chief advantage of this system is safety, the cook or user being unable to empty the cylinder, consequently should the water supply fail, the fire can be lighted in the usual way without risk, as in ordinary use it would take several days to boil away or evaporate the contents of the cylinder and boiler.

Another advantage gained by this system is that the cylinder being in such a warm situation, much less heat is lost by radiation, and by its being nearer to the boiler the circulation is effected more rapidly; and there are several other minor advantages to be gained by it, which, however, are not of sufficient importance to warrant detail here. The cold supply pipe _h_ leads from the cistern _i_ to the cylinder _k_; _l_ is the boiler; _m_ are draw-off service pipes with taps _n_ in the various apartments where needed.

Fig. 129 is commonly known as the “high” or the “old” system. This consists of a square or rectangular tank _a_, which performs the function of a reservoir for the hot water in the same way as a cylinder, but instead of being situated near the boiler _b_, it is fixed somewhere above the highest draw-off service, but of course below the cold cistern _c_; it is commonly found in the roof or attic in proximity to the cistern, but these are cold and bad situations for it; it is more often found in the bathroom, enclosed in a casing or cupboard, which is thereby made an efficient airing closet, and serves somewhat to prevent loss of heat referred to before (and hereafter), and the presence of the tank in the bathroom, although occupying considerable space, is a source of warmth, no mean advantage in winter.

The tank _a_ is connected with the boiler _b_ by “flow” and “return” pipes _d e_, the same as the cylinder, but they are necessarily much longer; the draw-off services _f_ are, or should be, _all_ connected to the “flow” pipe _d_ as shown, as the water in this pipe is the first to become heated as the water circulates or “flows” from the boiler to the tank; and an expansion pipe _g_ (not called a rising main in this instance) is carried from the highest point in the tank _a_ to above the level of the cold supply _c_, as in the cylinder system. There is no need to return this expansion pipe, but an unusually long draw-off service can and should be returned for the reasons before explained, and the method is to connect and carry the draw-off service from the flow pipe in the usual way and return it into the return pipe at a lower point, somewhat after the manner shown at _h_. Obviously the run or course of all pipes has to be adapted to circumstances, but it can be taken as an invariable rule that in correctly executed work “flow” pipes never descend and “return” pipes never ascend, but this will be more fully explained later on. In speaking of circulating pipes, the “flow” is recognised as running from boiler to tank (or cylinder), and the “return” from tank to boiler.

The cold-water supply _i_ is carried and connected to the tank _a_ in the same manner as to a cylinder, and provided with a stop tap _k_ to save the necessity of plugging the pipe where it leaves the cold-water cistern.

The chief advantage of this system is obtaining hot water a little quicker (but in less quantity) from the time the fire is lighted, than in the cylinder system, as it can be drawn almost immediately it leaves the boiler; but as good results in this respect can be attained with the cylinder if the directions subsequently given are attended to; another advantage in this system is that it can be erected at less expense than the other, and the tank costs but little more than half the price of a cylinder. These advantages are more than counterbalanced by the disadvantages, viz. the easy means of exhausting the apparatus of water if the supply fails, the longer period occupied in obtaining a body of hot water, and the necessarily cold or cool situations of the tank and pipes, so causing loss of heat by radiation, &c.

A few lines may be here devoted to explaining the cause of circulation, which the generality of householders are totally unacquainted with. For the reader to fully understand the subject, he must first know that water is composed of extremely minute particles (molecules), quite invisible to the eye, which have the property of gliding over, under, around, to and from each other, as circumstances dictate, in we may say a perfectly free manner, almost entirely without friction or resistance. When the apparatus is charged and the fire lighted, the particles nearest the fire become heated and expanded, and are, bulk for bulk, rendered lighter than their fellows, and consequently rise to the top of the boiler; finding an outlet there they rise up into this, and continue to rise until they reach the highest limit, which in No. 2 system is the top of the tank, and in No. 1 system, the top of the cylinder, unless the rising main is “returned,” in which case it will be where this “return” commences. Immediately the expanded particles leave the heated surface of the boiler, other cold particles descend into their place and are heated and expand to follow their predecessors, and so it continues as long as there is heat applied to the boiler. The circulation is really a continuous stream of expanded (heated) particles of water ascending the flow pipe, and a corresponding stream of cold or cooler particles descending the return pipe, a natural and very simple means of automatically transporting the hot water from the heating chamber (boiler) to the reservoir (tank) and automatically providing a supply of cold water to be heated in its turn.

The specific gravity of water at the boiling point, compared with water at the freezing point, is as 21 to 20, i.e. 20 gal. of very cold water will balance 21 gal. of very hot water.

The following are the few general rules to be observed for the efficient, economic, and safe working of either description of apparatus.

Commencing at the boiler, it is very necessary that the flue under this be quite cleared of cinders and ash once daily, and the length of the flue should be ascertained, as they differ considerably, and many instances occur where these flues are scrupulously cleaned but only in half or three-fourths their length, and very quickly the accumulation at the end of the flue becomes hard and solid, and an inexperienced person would then consider it to be the wall which forms the boundary at the back of these flues; this stoppage of course effectually prevents the water heating as it should do. Another cause of the water failing to heat quickly is omitting to have the interior of the boiler cleared of the incrustation or deposit (commonly known as fur) that accumulates more or less according to circumstances that will be fully described later on; when this inner coating attains a moderate thickness it very naturally retards the heat in passing from the fire to the water, especially as it is a poor conductor. There is, however, a more important reason why this incrustation should be removed regularly, and that is, when the boiler is coated to a certain thickness (which coating is more or less porous according to the district) it prevents the water coming in contact with the iron, and the boiler plate, however thick, is soon destroyed the same as if it contained no water at all, or to use a more familiar illustration, the same as a kettle would be “burnt” if left on the fire without having any water in it; this is a serious result from the costly nature of the repair.

The general form of incrustation is caused by the lime or chalk (bicarbonate of lime generally) held in solution, being separated from the water and precipitated; this precipitation commences at a moderately low temperature and gradually increases as the temperature rises, and the whole (excepting a very small quantity) is deposited when the water boils. The incrustation varies very much in quantity according to the district, as before stated; it is generally what is known as hard water that has the greatest percentage of this depositable matter; in some favoured districts the water is so soft that no appreciable deposit occurs, whilst in others it is not safe to leave the boiler longer than a month without cleansing to keep it in good order. There is also a variation according to whether the water boils much or otherwise, therefore the only reliable plan is to have a good workman in after a certain period, and he can then decide whether the amount of incrustation is too great or whether it might be permitted to go longer, and how long.

With London water, boilers that are in ordinary daily use should be cleaned out every 6 months to keep them in really good order, but to avoid the trouble of remembering dates, &c., many good firms keep a register for this work.

The most important places in the boiler that need cleaning are the parts immediately where the fire plays, especially the angles, where the boiler plates are welded or joined--and careless workmen are apt to neglect these parts--as the deposit is very hard and stone-like at these places.

It may be said without exaggeration that three-fourths of the fractures that occur to wrought-iron boilers are due to excessive incrustation, i.e. want of regular cleaning or removal of deposit.

Incrustation does not occur (but to an extremely small extent) in boilers used for heating purposes only, as in this instance the same water is heated over and over again, and water only contains a certain quantity of lime in solution, which is all deposited when it first boils.

It might be mentioned that in some places the deposit is organic matter, and is found in the boiler much resembling a layer of mud; in such instances the water should be filtered for obvious reasons.

The tank, cylinder and pipes, and in fact the whole apparatus (excepting the boiler) will be rendered more efficient by being covered with some non-conducting material to prevent loss of heat by radiation. Radiation is an important feature occasionally, as very many instances are known of apparatus being a complete failure, solely by reason of the tank or pipes (or both) being in very cold situations (cold draughty roofs, stone passages, &c., &c.); and a moment’s reflection shows that loss of heat is really loss of fuel attended with certain inconveniences well known to many who are suffering with this trouble. The common non-conducting material used is felt in its various forms. Hair felt is the best, as will be readily understood, and can be obtained at many ironmongers and may be applied by any one; for pipes it should be cut and put on in strips, wound round spirally, and tied. Another method is to encase the tank and pipes and pack the casing with a non-conducting material, such as cow hair, slag wool, sawdust, &c., but it is _most necessary_ that the casing be packed, otherwise the heated pipes will render the casing a flue which will draw in cold air and very materially assist in cooling the water, especially if the casing has open or badly fitted ends, in which case failure of the apparatus can be confidently anticipated.

In addition to the heat-saving properties, this covering also possesses the advantages of keeping the different places cool (an advantage for certain seasons only, excepting the kitchen) and saves the pipes from attack of frost, and under ordinary circumstances, if a small fire is left at night with the boiler flue _closed_, moderately warm water can be had for bathing _before the fire is lighted in the morning_; these two latter advantages are perhaps the greatest.

In reference to this subject, it is a great convenience if the range (if the boiler is in a range) is provided with a means of opening the fire, as, with an open fire a small quantity of fuel can be placed on it the last thing at night and it will burn in safety for a considerable time, and really _hot_ water can by this means be obtained at an early hour in the morning if the apparatus is “insulated” as explained above.

If the felt is placed round the pipes and tank without casing it should be one or two layers thick, say about ½ in., so that the hand can scarcely perceive any heat when the apparatus is in full action; a single layer of felt will answer, but not so perfectly.