MILL-CONSTRUCTION OF TO DAY

When it becomes universally recognised that fire insurance is only another name for direct annual taxation for fire protection, and that it might be in great measure avoided—certainly might be measurably lessened, if proper attention were paid to the construction of buildings, then the desirable consummation of a sense of security, accompanied by diminished expenses and less irrecoverable loss—as fire-waste is— will be achieved. It could be arrived at within a few years, so far at least as concerns factories and warehouses, if slow-burning or mill construction were adopted. Its adoption, with the necessary modifications, might fittingly become the rule in the case of ordinary buildings, just as the steel construction and its accompaniments, internal and external, are ruling in the new office buildings and apartment .houses and in the case of some theatres, schoolhouses, places of public gatherings and entertainments and a few churches. Unfortunately, however, that rule by no means universally obtains, and in very many instances, especially in the construction of tenement houses, the buildings of today are too much of the firetrap and too little of the fireproof description. The result is seen every day in the destructive fires that take place all over the country, causing too often the sacrifice of valuable life. Probably not the least to be condemned are those which profess to be fireproof—those built of incombustible materials, and yet so constructed as to be open to nearly every possible objection. There are present the exposure-hazard, the non-separation of one floor from another, the abundance of non-treated wood for partitions, flooring, window-frames, doors and the like, the uninclosed elevator-shafts, the open spaces, the stairways, often of wood, built alongside of these shafts and stairways, the absence of sprinkler equipments where such would be necessary and useful, the unsafe arrangement of furnaces—in a word, the presence of everything that might tend to start a fire and help to spread its progress through the building. Till these details are looked after (and, as a rule, they are too commonly the things least thought of by architects, builders and property owners), we must continue to expect to hear of disastrous conflagrations taking place all over the United States. As a matter of simple prudence it would be well for the underwriters to insist upon architects and builders conferring with their inspectors before putting up a structure, which, although it may be in strict accordance with the local building laws, may yet be defective in some of the details to which allusion has been made—almost essentials, when viewed from the standpoint of fire protection. This is especially desirable in the case of factories, churches, public halls and theatres, school and tenement houses and business buildings. If this policy were adopted, not only would many an unavoidable fire and fire-loss be prevented, but, also, preferential insurance rates would be granted to those conforming to this method. The question as to fire protection and the extinguishment of fire, so far as concerns equipment, has been fairly well solved. Fire-pails and buckets, handextinguishers and small hose are looked upon as indispensable adjuncts, and have over and over again put out fires in their incipiency. Automatic sprinklers extinguish a very large number of fires, or, at all events, serve to keep them in check until the Underwriter steam or rotary pump or the outside fire apparatus completes the work. Steam pipes and roof hydrants form another means of internal protection—all to be supplemented by an auxiliary fire-alarm system, careful, sober and intelligent watchman making half-hourly or at least hourly rounds (to be checked by some of the various time-clocks in use), trained to the use of the minor apparatus, possessed of a knowledge of the location of each sprinkler-valve, so as to be able to shut it off in case of need or breakage or to see that it is in order before the factory is closed for the night, and an efficient private fire brigade, thoroughly acquainted with the use of the means of fire protection that are provided, and each member subjected to such frequent drills as will render it morally impossible for him to make any mistake either as to the work he shall do or the position he shall assume in case of fire.

MILL-CONSTRUCTION WHAT IT IS.

When the accepted fireproof construction of steel and brick or concrete is not adopted, mill construction should take its place. That method of construction consists in so disposing the timber and plank in heavy solid masses as to expose the least number of corners or ignitable projections to fire, to the end, also, that, when fire occurs, it may be most readily reached by water from sprinklers or hose; in separating every floor from every other floor by incombustible stops—by automatic hatchways, by incasing stairways and belts either in brick or other incombustible partitions—so that a fire shall be retarded in passing from floor to floor to the utmost that is consistent with the use of wood or any material in construction that is not absolutely fireproof; in guarding the ceilings over all specially hazardous stock or processes with fire-retardent material, such as plastering plain lime plastering only) laid on wire-lath or expanded metal or upon open dovetailed-lath, following the lines of the ceilings over hazardous places with sheet metal or other fire-retardent; in so constructing the mill, workshop or warehouse that fire shall pass as slowly as possible from one part of the building to another; and in providing all suitable safeguards against fire. The roof-spaces, especially in the case of hospitals, asylums, schools and hotels, should be utilised for sun-parlors and places for recreation,rest and play, not peaked or turreted or with dormer lights. These, besides rendering the attic story practically useless far occupancy, serve to interfere with the operations of the firemen and often to hinder the escape of the inmates. There is also a necessity for guarding against the spread of fire from one building to another across an intervening space, unless there are incombustible fire-walls and curtains and window-openings adequately protected. Such walls are pot infrequently omitted because of their first cost.

It may be added that mill construction practically presupposes the installation of an automatic sprinkler system, as in one of the accompanying illustrations. In a mill-construction building the floor should be of 3-in. plank,-grooved and splined, covered with i-in. top boarding, laid on timbers eight or ten feet on centres, has been made continuous—that is to say. without any breaks for belt-holes, open elevators or open stairways. Such a floor has never been burned through by a fire upon it or by fire passing through the floor above, except in a very few in stances. One was in a warehouse where a pile of jute bales took fire in the bottom tier where it could not be reached. The firemen then put water through the hole from below’. Fires on such mill-floors have been held not only in the building, but in the room where they originated. Again, iron posts have been crippled or sprung by heat a great many times at an early period in a fire. Wooden posts of suitable size have never burned off, until other parts of the building were already destroyed. They have in one instance resisted for hours fire which destroyed granite posts close by them by cracking and scaling—the granite measuring 12-in. x 12-in. In fact, the mill-floor, properly constructed and rightly guarded, has sufficed to hold fires not only in the building, but in the room in which they have originated until the mill fire department or the public fire department could extinguish the fire. The wooden mill-post of suitable size will last longer than the floor. The mill-floor possesses this very great advantage over the ordinary joisted floor. Fires may be readily swept away between the timbers either by sprinklers or by water from hose-pipes; while in the joisted floor the fire will burn on one side of the joist while the water is playing on the other side. Of the accompanying illustrations, one shows the exterior of a modern building of true mill construction, one wall being removed, in order to show its interior arrangement, the details of which have already been partly described, other details to be given hereafter. The other illustration shows its sprinkler-equipment, interior and exterior. In the pumproom are two 750 or 100gal. steam pumps of the Underwriter type, W’ith an 8-in. discharge pipe for each pump and the necessary connections. Each pump has one suction-pipe. The supply may be taken from a large reservoir, pond or river. When a good public water supply or large elevated reservoir cannot be available, a large tank, whose bottom is 25 ft. or more above the highest floor, is provided as shown in the diagram On the outside are shown the arrangement of the plugs,Tee and other, hydrants, including roof hydrants, controling circuits, indicator post gates, cotton conveyor-pipe to opening room in the storehouses, with their platforms dry-pipe valve on long bypass, and river for the sprinkler-service, pits, check-valves, gates, etc. Inside are seen the main mill, with its risers, heating flue, elevators, belt or rope tower, hose standpipe, closet-tower, fanroom, enginehouse and boilerroom (these last four off it. but connected) pickerhouse, dust receptacle and passage. It will be seen that stout fire-walls are erected inside, provided with standard firedoors at every fire-w’all and across the intervening spaces between the various buildings that do not form an actual part of the main structure. Wherever, also, there are windows, these should be of wired-glass in metal frames.

(To be continued.)