NEW HOUSES FOR OLD

Evening Star, Issue 21994, 2 April 1935, Page 2

NEW HOUSES FOR OLD

Additions and alterations if carefully planned and carried out can transform even an oast house into a very comfortable home.

It is only tlie very lucky few who are entirely content with their own home, and with everything in it. This does not mean that most people are filled with discontent regarding their own possessions and envy of those of others, but that a perfectly legitimate desire for improvement in some particular respect is felt by the majority of us. Indeed, if this were not so it would mean either that everyone has all the money he or she can spend or that ambition and pride in the home are dead, both equally undesirable states. The aim of most householders is to live as comfortably as possible within the limits of their incomes; but incomes to-day are often sadly depleted, and lead to economies that, broadly considered, are not economies at all. In this category comes the endurance of certain domestic discomforts such as inefficient hot water systems, faulty heating arrangements, and inadequate cooking facilities; also neglect ot property by ■insufficient repairs and decorations. . , Readers are therefore advised to take stock of their homes and see what they really require to add-to comfort and eliminate work. Inefficient plant is as wasteful in the home as ih the factory, and any money spent on improvement of property not only adds to the pleasure of present occupation, but increases its selling or letting value in the future. THE EXTERIOR OF YOUR HOUSE. Exterior paintwork should always be renewed when necessary, for neglect to do so may result in permanent damage to the wood itself through, exposure. In any case, the better the condition of the old paint the less preparation required for the new, and it is the cost of this preliminary work rather than the actual repainting that makes a decorator’s, bill high. If necessary, fencing should be repainted or given a coat of preservative, any sign of dry rot in any woodwork immediately remedied, and other repairs effected. Defective guttering, brickwork that requires re-pointing, loose roof tiles, etc., are all things which should receive attention, or they will surely be the cause of far greater havoc at a later ■date'. Structural alterations when carefully planned and executed are entirely successful, and will often save the heavier expense of moving into a larger house. One room only may require enlarging, a window thrown out, or an attic converted into a usable room, while in certain cases an extra wiiig may bo added to accommodate the growing family. Frequently it is required to build a garage, sometimes with a room above. A NEW BATHROOM. Internally this same principle applies. How many houses—“ family residences,” as an estate agent would describe them, having often as many as seven to ten bedrooms—possess but one bathroom? The addition of a second would be appreciated by every member of the household, and would save much inconvenience and many a frayed temper. For the actual equipment of the bathroom there are many alternatives, from the inexpensive porcelain enamelled cast-iron bath to luxury suites of marble. An enamelled bath enclosed by imitation marble side and foot panels is perhaps the best choice at a moderate price. Coloured earthenware fittings are not as expensive as formerly, and can give an extremely attractive effect. It sometimes arises that a small area is available for conversion into a bathroom, and if it be such that a bath of the usual length cannot be accommodated, it is possible to obtain a shorter one which gives comfortable if not luxurious bathing space. The fitting of wash basins in bedrooms should be far more common than it is at present, though it is admittedly an improvement increasingly found in new houses. Their . introduction into older premises is heartily recommended, provided new pipe-runs required con be installed without undue damage to walls, etc. In many cases this difficulty can lie overcome by neatly fitted exterior piping, whicli if cfecorated to match the walls, is not unduly conspicuous. For certain purposes, such as in a dentist’s surgery, some readers may be interested to know that a pedestal wash basin is obtainable with an electric

water heater contained in the pedestal itself. Thus only a cold water supply pipe and electric point are required for the production of not or cold water.

ELECTRIFYING THE HOME. The mention of electricity opens a wide vista. The large majorty of houses could, with advantage, be more fully electrified than they are already. Electricity follows a common rule—the greater the demand the cheaper the commodity—and increased use is the surest way of bringing the cost down, IDxtra lighting points where required, and power points for the use of all kinds of domestic appliances are conveniences that add to comfort, and appreciably lessen the labour of housework. Now that electricity is being taken all over the country, a new era of home comfort is open to country dwellers, who should be quick to avail themselves of this opportunity.

DOMESTIC EFFICIENCY. Central heating is another adjunct to a comfortable and labour-saving house, and such a system can in most cases be installed without undue upheaval. The independent coke-fired boiler is entirely to be recommended. Oil-burning units aro another possibility, and are gaining favour especially in the larger type of private house. When some form of central heating is required for one or two rooms only—e.g., hall and dining room adjoining the kitchen, the substitution of a rather larger independent boiler than, that employed for the domestic hot water will often solve the difficulty. Radiators can then be fitted where required. To turn to the improvement of one’s house in the kitchen quarters, there is often much that could he undertaken to save both time and money in the long run. The old-fashioned kitchen range, excellent as it was in many ways, is undoubtedly ns much a thing of the past as the old “ Puffing Billy,” for it is superseded by quicker, cleaner, and more efficient types. Those who still cling to an out-of-date range should Study and weigh up the economics to be effected by the substitution of its modern counterpart. ! If solid fuel is still to be used, there is the portable kitchen range burning anthracite or coke, though soft coal may be used if desired.

One of tho latest types of kitchen ranges is the invention of a Swede, and is made in England by a British company. Another of the same type is manufactured by an old-established and well-known Scotch foundry. They burn coke or anthracite and are kept alight continuously, the annual fuel consumption being guaranteed by the makers to cost as little as £4 for the standard size model in one case, and about £6 for the larger stove. This economy is effected by the “ heat accumulation ” principle on which the stoves are constructed, being so insulated that an efficiencj' exceptionally high is obtained. It is therefore necessary to maintain only a small fire, the'heat of which is most carefully distributed to hot-plate, top and lower ovens. The top is provided with boiling and simmering plates, and a model is also obtainable with a water heater. These stoves are finished in chromium and enamel.

Where old-fashioned .gas stoves arc still in use their owners probably do not realise the saving of labour and gas effected by the newer types, a saving that would soon repay the cost of the exchange. New models have high-effi-ciency burners, and greatly improved circulation of heat and air within the oven. They are also fitted with automatic oven-heat control, a tremendous step forward in economy and ease of operation. There is even a cooker which when not in use is hidden within a coloured enamel cabinet with stainless steel mountings ,and feet, thus completely hiding its identity. Electric cookers have also reached a very high standard of design and efficiency, and in price are an excellent investment. They incorporate the same labour-saving finishes as the gas cookers and like many of them are well raised from the floor to obviate undue stooping. The ovens are particularly economical of current, and cook well, with remarkably little food loss. A plate-warming chamber, three heat control switches, and an oven thermometer are incorporated in most models.

CONSTANT HOT WATER. If the hot water supply of a house is inadequate, much discomfort and a lowered standard of work may result. Particularly in old houses, the fault may, of course, lie in the size or disposition of the hot-water storage tank and circulating system, and this also would have to be remedied. For the average household the choice of an independent coke-fired boiler could not be bettered. It is easy of installation, produces constant hot water, and with discrimination, may be used for the burning of practically all household rubbish. In certain cases a gas-heated system may be preferred, and there are good installations obtainable to supply any required number of draw-off points. A geyser will in many households give all the extra hot water that spells the difference between comfort and discomfort, or an electrically heated storage tank controlled by a thermostat to chock unnecessary use of current. The fitting of an immersion heater into the hot water storage tank to act as an auxiliary heater is also extremely useful in some houses where hot water is required in a hurry, or where in very hot weather the main eating unit may not be in use. INTERIOR DECORATION. To turn to the improvement of property by interior decoration, the addition of hardwood floors has an undisputed claim. They are hygienic, draught proof, and give an increased feeling of space. They may be in the form of the well-known oak parquet or the equally popular narrow oak boards. When a house is in course of construction the latter may be laid direct on suitable joists without the necessity for a sub-floor. When any hardwood floor is laid it is an excellent plan to have a narrow strip of the same wood attached to the skirting to avoid damaging paintwork when polishing. Many kitchen floors are a source of great trouble to their owners, and it is perhaps not an exaggeration to say the ideal surface for this purpose is yet to be discovered. If we have not yet reached absolute perfection in this regard, however, it is none the less poor policy to continue without one of the really good types of flooring available. The jointless composition floor is perhaps the best, and excellent it is if supplied and laid by a firm. As some may know, this flooring is laid in semi-liquid state, and afterwards petrifies into a dust-impervious surface. It may bo laid with a coving at the junction of floor and skirting, thus rendering the harbouring of dust impossible. Polished red .or buff quarry tiles are also sufficiently hard and dirtresisting, but are objected to by some as being too cold and hard, to tbe feet. A good quality inlaid linoleum of granite or jaspe pattern is an excellent applied covering for a kitchen floor, and one that will give almost indefinite service if laid under proper conditions and properly cared for by regular wax polishing and only occasional washing. Much time and energy are spent in a great number of houses keeping interior paintwork clean, particularly on doors and staircases. Panelled effects with dust-trapping mouldings, and balusters which harbour dirt are a legacy from many builders both past and present. The task of modernising such woodwork is by no means impossible, and is worth every penny spent upon it. The cost also should be found to compare very favourably with the total incurred by the usual periodic repainting and enamelling. Ply-wood, which can now be bought in sheets of many sizes, veneered with different woods, may be used to enclose tho balusters, and make of them one flush surface from top to bottom of the staircase. The treads and risers of the stairs can also bp covered either completely or merely about an inch or two beneath the stair carpet on either side, a half-round moulding which can be bought by the foot being employed at the outer edge of each step to form a nosing. Doors may also be modernised by covering each side with a single panel of plywood to form the flush surface which is not only most pleasing in appearance, but is undoubtedly the easiest of all to keep clean. The surface may be finished in any desired shade, e.g., light or dark oak if an oak-faced ply is used, or any shade of mahagouy or walnut if wood having this face is chosen. Oldfashioned mantelpieces may be covered in with ply-wood m a good plain design, which hides the old type of painted iron surround. It is also possible to box in old skirtings, window ledges, and frames with ply or solid wood, and this is particularly suitable for windows in conjunction with a staircase transformed as already described. To complete the modernisation, ornamental newelposts may be cut off practically flush with the handrail if necessary, and the latter relieved of useless bevelling by planing to a simple smooth surface.