VENTILATION AND HEATING.

Wairarapa Age, 15 July 1931, Page 4

VENTILATION AND HEATING.

ADDRESS BY MR. T. A. RUSSELL. HEALTH IN THE HOME. “Ventilation and Heating,’* formed the subject of an address given, at yesterday’s luncheon of the Masterton Optimist Club by Optimist T. A. Russell. In his introductory remarks Mr. Russell said it was well to remember that primitive man was physically an outside animal, and speaking generally, the msore the present day man kept in the open, the more robust he was. Ventilation was an attempt to combine the best outside atmospheric conditions with the warmth and protection of the house. After referring to the bad effects of excessive humidity, Mr. Bussell said the conditions sought were a relative humidity not above 75 per cent., isi temperature of albout 60 degrees and a gentle air movement without ceasing. Methods of ventilation might be divided into two classes, natural and mechanical. Natural ventilation was brought about by the wind, by the difference in weight of volumes of gases at different temperatures and thirdly, by diffusion. The wind ventilated in two ways—by perplation and by aspiration. The apparatus used in natural ventilation included windows, doors, chimneys and other devices. New Zealand’s temperate climate, said Mr. Russel], permitted the use of cross ventilation in schools and hospitals. This allowed the rooms to ibe constantly flushed with fresh air in summer time and if judicious use were made of the winds, in conjunction with the heating system, fairly satisfactory ventilation was obtained in winter. This style of building also allowed full use of sunshine. The Cecelia Whatman Home, the Public Hospital and all the later schools were designed to obtain cross ventilation and maximum sunshine. In New Zealand, all residences were ventilated by natural means and care should be taken in the placing of windows to secure, where possible, cross ventilation. The Health Department now stated that on the score of health, there was no need to demand more than a nine feet stud, provided the ventilation (windows) extended to near the ceiling. The old idea of closing the windows to exclude the night air was happily almost a thing of the past and the closing of bedroom windows on a wet dey to keep out .the moist air was of no practical value, as the inside and outside air were soon equalised. Steps should be taken to ensure that in the third of their lives spent in bed, people should have as rearly as possible conditions approximating to good outside weather. Referring to the living room, the speaker said the fire itself was a splendid ventilator and if no sense of stuffiness was experienced there was not much cause for w’orry. For rcailly efficient ventilation where numbers of people were gathered together, with only a few cubic feet of .space per person, mechanical ventilation became necessary. Mr. Russell went on to mention tho various systems employed. Good ventilation was just common sense and provided the body was kept reasonably comfortable as regards warmth, the more fresh air and sunshine they got into their rooms the better. After a number of questions had been answered Mr. Russell was accorded a hearty vote of thanks.