MONOLITHS.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXIV, Issue 17730, 2 December 1919, Page 2

MONOLITHS.

«»■ •■• SOLVING THE HOUSING PROBLEM.

BIG CONTRACT FOR NEW ZEALAND PATENTEE. The following item appeared in The Post of 26th April, last; it was the forerunner of a long controversy as to the merit of wood and concrete in the erection of dwellings:—"Mr H. E. Manning, builder, in a communication to The Post claims that the housing problem may be solved by th« substitution of concrete for timber in the construction of dwelling, using wood only for doors and sashes, roofing and flooring. The idea is to build the walls of solid concrete, which will be put into position by steel and iron moulds worked off and supported by iron framing which allows for carrying at the same time all reinforcements, windows and sash frames. If a damp course is needed in the centre of exjterior walls the moulds can with jvery little york be adjusted, so that | a damp course can be put in as the I walls are built. The framework is | sib arranged that the only timber

needed is the scaffolding planks, which are placed on the framework as the walls rise." In subsequent letters Mr Manning explained the advantages of a patent boxing system, of which he is the inventor, and asserted that houses could be erected at a cost of £100 per room instead of £150 to £200, as is the case now with wooden houses.

CONTRACT FOR 66 MONOLITHS,

In subsequent letters to The Post Mr Manning explained what were to Ms mind the distinctive advantages of the monolith .-.ystein over the concrete block system. The Government has now decided to give Mr Manning an opportunity to substantiate his claims, and, as announced in The Post on Saturday, he has just signed,^, contract to erect 66 monoliths—sl at Mirnmar and^ 15 at Petone. Mr Manning claims that it was through the correspondence in The Post that his plan of monolithic building attracted the Government, and he was pleased, *vhen asked by the Department's officials to bring forward a scheme to try and solve j the housing problem, to rind a board! and a Minister who viewed the idea favourably. In an interview with a Post representative recently Mr Manning" referred to the deplorable [housing conditions in New Zealand at the present time, and said thatapparently the country had now found a Government which was prepared to tackle the problem in a wholesale manner. He predicted that, under the new Housing Act, the cliffi-1 culty would be overcome in the i course of two years. "It is no use I crying out that there is a great shortage of labour ard material in this country/ he said. "There is an ample of both, and I am certain that the Department of Labour, with its increased powers, is prepared to handle the problem in a vigorous way. I have shown a way for the erection of many houses quickly and cheaply, and I am prepared to increase my present contract for 66 houses to 166, with little fear of not completing x-ithin the specified time. I have been advocating the monolith system for some time. The principal item is cement, for the other aggregates, such as river shingle, quarry metal, pumic, scoria, and, best of all, clinker from furnaces, are here in abundance,

NOT AN EXPERIMENT.

"The houses which I have contracted to erect at Miraruar on the monolithic system will, when completed, compare more than favourably with the wooden houses such as workers have been forced to live in in the past. There will be a fine hot water service, porcelain bath and basin, and all other conveniences. The cottajes I am about to erect lor the Government can each have a jimerent frontage without any extra expense. A worker buying one of these houses v/ill have practically nothing to meet in the way of upkeep, tne fire risk will be at a minimum, and the houses will be rid of vermin. It is not a case of experimenting, because there aife many concrete houses erected in different parts of Hew Zealand AVhich have stood the test of time. Vhe concrete portions will last for hundreds of years. Most important of all, the cose of each house will be under £650, including .the section."

WHAT THE PLANS PROVIDE FOR.

Tho plans of the house provide for the following;— Living room, 13ft x 14ft, with fireplace; bedroom 13ft '6in x lift 6in, bedroom 13ft x 9ft, bedroom Bft Bin x Bft Sin, kitchen 13ft x 12ft 6in, with r-nge, pantry, and sink; hall Bft x Bft porch Bft x 6ft washhouse 9ft x 7Ct, with tubs and copper, bathroom 9ft x sft with porcelain bath and basin, tradesmen's lobby 3ft Sin x 3ft tin. besides other conveniences. Everything will be under one roof, and '&lootric light W in jj e instaiisci throughout, with one point fur iron. Fences are to be dispensed with, and 2in concrete walls substituted. The exterior walls, Gin thick,-will bo in solid concrete, reinforced with steel, and the interior walls four inches thick, in solid concrete, reinforced with wire. The exterior walls will be rough cast and finished white, while the interiors ■ will be either plastered white or finished with paint or distemper. Casement windows with fanlights are provided for all the principal rooms. Notable points about the monoliths are: The chimneys are in solid complete, cutting out the bricklayers altogether; there is no necessity for the paperhanger; 70, per cent, of the painters' work is cut out; the ho'iMcs being standardised and built under a patent scheme, cut out fully 50 per cent, of the skilled work which ordinarily attached to the erection of a dwelling.

TWO HOUSES A WEEK

Under the which the Goverrfment has favoured, the houses aro built in a solid block from the base to_ the top of the chimney. The walls will be erected three feet at a time, which enables the concrete to be rammed down hard. A wall of nine feet could thug be erected in three days. The boxing can be erected in a fow hours and dismantled in a shorter time for use on another house. After the original outlay for the plant, it is claimed the buildings can go right ahead, the only costs being concerned with labour and material. Mr Manning stated that the Departmental architect (Mr Temple) has always been a great advocate of the monolithic system, but hag been handicapped owing to the difficulty in finding a builder prepared to enter upon the work on an extensive scale. Mr Manning says he will commence operations almost immediately, and rs soon as the necessary machinery and plant have been made. Ke proposes to have four separate plants, and at the end of about five months i guarantee to deliver to the Department two houses every week. Very likly the two will be increased to four when the scheme is in thorough working order.