HEARTH : : And HOME

Press, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20736, 22 December 1932, Page 6

HEARTH : : And HOME

"'Builder'' invites contributions from readers on any matters of interest which they might like to propose. Correspondence 011 various subjects pertaining to building nil! also be accepted. NOTES. iStcel will polish quickly and brilliantly it rubbed over with a little vinegar and polished with a solt duster. Jlegret that the Unemployment! Board was considering removing tho building subsidy was expressed to "Builder" yesterday by Mr W. Williamson. of Ohristchureh. Ho stated that he had three applications beiore the Board at the present tune. \ contruct. which lias been let by General Motors, Ltd., lor the repainting of tho whole of the oids.do o their i'aetorv at Pctone Has enabled an appreciable reduction to cflcctcd in the number of unemployed pamtois in tho Ilutt Valley, and it is expected that the rnen will be kept in occupation for sis or eighty weeks. Vacuum cleaner bans should be emptied by inserting tho open end m » paper bug. The more usual method of emptying Iho bag on ait open newspaper scatters dust and is thorough., unhygienic. Piano pedals that Mjuoak can. treated bv rubbing the ped ;l l bars with a little blacklead. Remember to wash the hands before replacing the irout panel. Borax is one of the best cleansers to use on a port*lain bath. Moisten the surface of tho bath, sprinkle some powdered borax on a pad of cotton, and briskly rub soiled or greasy paiU. Paraffin will clean a painted bath, but all trace of the cleanser must bo carefully removed afterwards warm water. Tortoise-shell brush-backs can bo cleaned and repolished at home. - • a paste of very iinely powdered pumiej stono and oil. Apply w.th an o>«» suede glove. Hub in well, then mise off quickly in warm water to remove the paste. Next rub with moist plat powder; wipe this off. then finally polish with dry plate powder.

A considerable amount of J" a travelling had to bo dotio recently t>y .Mr \V. \ViUiamson, of Christchurcn, to secure a private contract lor the erection of buildings for the I remier Tobacco Co., Nelson. Mr Williamson left Christchureh at 6.40 p.m. an ving in Nelson nest nioining, He ferrcd with the directors of the company in the afternoon, estimated job, and returned to Christchureh th* t night.

No longer need our last horn or s of restful slumber be disturbed 0 light-hearted early nulkman (obscivts a London writer). The silenit del;i\ 5 van, a long overdue blessing, ha arrived. It is electric, and tho loudest noise it can produce is a son whirr, which should not wake tho lightest sleeper. It is perhaps, most important piece of tho supersession by tho milk bottle tho clattering can.

The ugly brown starn—or blue iU'o soiled article has been starched ol iodine is easily removed by t >o article in a saucer ot warm which a dessertspoon Jul ot h>l>o _£«£ been dissolved. It the stam_ is Ites'i the effect is magical—it vanishes mediately while even an old stain jicK-s to a very few minutes soakingarticle should then be rinsed two or three times in clean water and dned.

Inaugurating the third School of Liorariaiiship at j,ain Lieutenant-Colonel J. M. ehell', president of the Library As^1* nUed"k fngd Trust ° commented on *MStJSS,>ZX*£ not bo plastered with_ rcprcs disciplinary notices. Rooms might W brightened with flowers and plants.

Painted bedroom floors pt badly marked almost every time tho bed is made, through the rolling of the castors. To avoid this a rubber table-mat cm bo placed under each leg. Ih is will not only save tho paint, but will also keep tho bed from sliding far out of position. These mats can bo bought in several colours and chosen to match tho floor paint or painted over with the same paint. Repainting mats is tar less trouble than repainting bad patches on the floor.

Tho rural districts of Oaniaru are now displaying more interest in all classes of the building and allied trades. This is all to the good, as there must be a great deal of renovating requiring attention, says tho ' New Zealand Decorator." During tho past two or three years, North Otago crops have suffered heavily from want of rain, whilo disastrous hail storms have taken toll. At present, indications are of a bumper harvest, and, together with tho upward tendency in market values for primary produce, the result should be reflected in tho demand for all classes of work calling for the skill of builders and allied tradesmen.

When walls arc to be glazed or Mended, it is important to have the Inundation as nearly perfect as possible, so that no defects will show up through the finish. To this end great care must bo taken to'select the correct material and apply it properly. Tho paint applied to tho plaster must adhere firmly the surface and stop the suction. AVhcnever this result can bo accomplished with one coat that will be sufficient, but a surface to bo glazed or blended must be absolutely non-absorbent, and must be finished in a rough, uniform stipple. It is not always possible to produce such a finish with one coat. More frequently it will be necessary to apply at least two cents.

Recent developments in metal alloy have opened a now Held of design to the architect. The projecting portion of the paybox of the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre, Stratford-on-Avon, is cased with matt-surfaced stainless steel plates, between which are horizontal ribs of bronze. Tho cresting is chromium-plated, with small pieces of silver bronze, all of theso metals giving contrasts of texture and colour. Between the paybox units are strips of pilasters of Swedish gi'eeit marble, and the whole is set against a background of grey brickwork. The doorway. 0110 of a pair at each side of the pavbox. is in harmony. The architrave and lining arc of Swedish green marble; a painted hardwood canopy is suoportcd on two matt stainless steel columns, havinc a cross section shaped like an eight-pointed star. The panels over the r-nnony are of painted plaster, wbilo over all is an illuminated glass pelmet.

[A NEW DESIGN, CHRISTCHUKCH BUILDER'S SCHEME. USE IX BUIDGEWORK. A new method of construction will bo used in the building of the new j bridge over the Molyneaux river, at Baklutha, immediately after tho New Year, by Messrs W. "Williamson, Ltd., of Christchurch. The plans prepared by tho Public Works Department, provided for 30ft bowstring .spans of concrete with a tail mast and head mast and a ropeway to carry material, also a steel truss built on cylinders to carry tho permanent work. Mr "Williamson will employ a method new to New Zealand, and of his own design. The scheme will provide for the driv- j ing of steel hlieet piling, and filling up on the insido with spoil from tho river, thus making an island. 'i here will be fivo sets of cylinder.", each Sft nross, and they will be built on dry land and then" sunk, so that all tho work will be carried out froo of the water. As the current of the river is eight miles an hour, this method will save a considerable amount of expense and extra work. Tho excavation work will bo done with an "orange-peel" bucket. Work Above "Water Level. , The concrete "fcpaus will be the largest ever designed in New Zealand, and, according to Mr Williamson, the general plan reflects the greatest credit 011 tho Public Works Department. Tho system of carrying the bridge will embody tho use of concrete arch ribs, connected up with hinges, allowing for expansion and contraction. Lach truss will be lowered to a punt, and swung round to the spans. All the work "will be above the water level. j There will be two approach spans to the bridge, and six main spans of IJOti. each, of the bowstring girder type. Over 5500 yards of concrete, will be used, together with GOO tons of steel. , The spans will weigh 720 tons each. There will bo a roadway, 22ft wide, over the bridge, and two footways, each six feet. The decking will be 30ft above the normal level of tho water, and the crown of the arch 60ft. Tho old timber bridge was washed away in I*7B, and a new otio built in 1880. The total cost of the new bridge will be about £40,000. NEW BUILDINGS. THE CITY MARKET. LARGE SCALE ALTERATIONS. Alterations and additions on a very large scale are being carried out at the Colombo strcot premises of Mr H. C. Smith, known as the City Market. The existing buildings have been remodelled, and a large iron and steel storeroom has been built in one part of the yard. This will bo equipped with a rostrum, and used when live stock, farm implements, and large and weighty goods arc being sold. In addition, two buildings have been remodelled. so that motor-lorries can bo run in and out, and discharge their goods directly into tho sheds. Most of the front portion of tho yard is being roofed over, and will Contain pens for poultry, and give shelter to the auctioneers and buyers. One building is 105 ft by 47ft, another 00ft by COft, a third 70ft by 40ft, a fourth COft by 30ft, and a fifth 132 ft by 40ft. The auction rooms will thus probably be the largest in tho Dominion. Messrs l'ctcr Graham and Sou are tho contractors, and the work will be completed in about another month. 1 ~ ' FUNGOID GROWTHS. RESEARCH IN ENGLAND. EFFECT ON* PAINTWORK. Tho conclusions of the Building research Station, London, as a result of investigation into fungoid growth on painted walls should prove interesting. A borough engineer naked for observations on a black, fungoid growth which appeared on largo walls of public baths. The walls were finished with a proprietary stone paint. The Research Station reportod that tho building in question was visited by an investigator, and tho trouble was found to be one which occurs tinder certain conditions on decorative media containing oil or other organic material, and more especially where exposed to a warm, humid atmosphere. Difficulty in Eradication. From accounts of attempts that have Wen made to eradicato growths of this kind, it is evident that considerable difficulty has been experienced. Where tho surface affected has bee:i cleaned off and redecorated, the trouble in liable to recur unless the surface has been thoroughly (sterilised with a fungicidal agent. It would appear, therefore, that paint used for redecoration should in itself bo fungicidal. For the purpose of sterilising the Portland cement rendering, a solution of magnesium silicoiluoride would be expected to prove effective, although actual experience of its use is lacking. Fungicidal Paint. In conditions particularly favourable to the growth of moulds and fungi such as those obtaining in baths, it would usually bo safer to avoid the uso of organic decorative media altogether and, where glazed tiling is precluded on account of cost, to obtain decorative effects by the use of white or coloured cements. It is understood that certain of tho leading paint manufacturers have considered the problem of incorporating fungicides in paint; their advice might be helpful in dealing -vrith the problem of redecoration after sterilisatioi.. An appreciable increase in the amount ot work offering lias been noticeable in Wellington in the past live or six weeks, and the hopes of all are centred in the continuance of the improvement. The advent of the popular spring-clc; ning and re-decorating period ol the year, the encouragement given lor building, painting, and pnperhanrsing work by tho facilities offered under the No. 10 unemployment scheme, and the brighter note of optimism which has prevailed lately explain the revival.

COMFORT IN THE BED*! ROOM. i INSTALLATION OF BASIN. j ; In now houses nowadays it is found J a great advantage if tlic principal bed- | rooms include a fitted lavatory basin, with taps for liot and cold water. Tito lavatory basin, with porcelain sink and chromium tap 3, often looks out of place in the bedroom, as though ' a piece of the bathroom had strayed by 1 mistake i»lo this room, and it is therefore rather convenient to be able to put it out of sight. ( In some recent house plans the lavatory basiii lui3 been treated as a cupboard. It lias 11 folding door of the "telephone" type, which hangs on a metal rail and is hinged down the centre. An udvantage with a cupboard of this kind is that plate-glass shelves, a soap dish, and other useful fitments can be included, which would seem out j of place if not concealed. j An alternative is to place the basm in"a recess between two wardrobe cupboards, ami the recess is screened off with artificial silk hangings. This also is an effective and economical method of camouflage. It helps in carrying out tUo bedroom colour scheme, and the lavatory basin and its adjacent shelves arc, nuito unnoticeable. If it is l'elt that another piece oi furniture is needed in place of the obsolete washataiul. a dressing chest could be substituted, or a low chest with lid , if iilacc'l the foot of the bed. could Ik. used both for spare bedding and as extra scat. A .-mall bookcase for fMvourit'c bedMde volumes is a piece of imre which many people appreri- : '7' in nny cvc "< u wUI thnt - the' fitted lavatory basin, if placed in a • suitable cupboard or recess, is both a practical convenience and a means ot . saving spate. ! 1 4 ~ih of L'-'l-MO to buikl a library j fn. fniversity College. .Southampton, , was reported a. a inert mg of the l.m- j • *. '/rolled Council. I a'cr;"i ry

ALDERLY HALL. j CONTENTS SOLD BY AUCTION, j The auctioneer's hammer began tiio , breaking-up ot one of England's I stately homer-, when the contents ot i Aldcrlv Hall, Cheshire, the ancestral j homo of Lord Stanley ot Aldcrlv were I offered for sale (says the ' 'Daily ; .Mail"). The sale was due to heavy : death duties, the family estate having j been reduced liv two deaths within six ! years. 'Hie .'O-year-old holder of the i barony who succeeded on his father s death in August, 1931, has as his only home "Tho Granary"—an annexe to Alderly Hull—although less than GO years ago his grandfather, tho fourth baron , owned two mansions in Cheshire, each in a vast estate, and a house m London. Tho library shelves which lined the four nail,', of the sale room were sold for JLUO. At each end of the room is a panel of dummy bookfoacks m ith hidden, springs which jjiv®

entrance to adjoining rooms. Many pictuies were offered for sale, including portraits of Lord Stanley's ancestors. 1 rices offered were low. Some did not even raise a bid. The preparation of a plastered sur!;ite for tho application of oil paint is easy and quite simple. If the surface has never been painted ■ before, and the ! plaster is ntnv and liable to have hot ' -I'ots in it. it is wise, in the interests j ot saiety first,'* to apply a neutralis- I mg < ojjl of zjlie sulphate solution, made I » 'iis.-.olving two pounds ot zinc sulpnatc crystals in a gallon of water. • his liquid should bo applied with a listeni per brush, and, after the solution is applied, let tho job stand for a- least forty-eight hours, to permit the chemicals to complete the work of the l?mp lfie CflnStiC P r °P ert *S of i 1>r T lol 'i V - the mansion and Peter sL' f- v , ' lenttv to her son Cornar-ilion a -" d lhc Rugate V.ou oi at,on ls considering buying the