68 Hints respecting the 



place. F G is the pipe admitting cold water into the bath 

 by the opening H, when the stopcock I is open, and K closed ; 

 but when I is closed, and K open, the same pipe serves to 

 empty the bath, the water flowing off through the general 

 waste-pipe L, which also carries away the overflowings of the 

 bath, through M. 



The advantages of this form of bath are numerous. The 

 shorter the pipes of communication from the bath to the boiler 

 the better, but they may extend forty or fifty feet without any 

 inconvenience beyond that of expense : so that there is no 

 obstacle to the bath being near the bed-room while the boiler 

 is on the basement story. There is but little time required for 

 heating the bath, the water in which may, if requisite, be raised 

 to 100° in about half an hour from the time of lighting the 

 fire. The consumption of fuel is also trifling. 



The following are the chief disadvantages attendant upon 

 this plan, and the means of obviating them : — 



It is necessary, when the water has acquired its proper tem- 

 perature, to draw the fire from the boiler, and not to use the 

 bath immediately, as it will go on acquiring some heat from that 

 of the boiler.and its brickwork, so that we may become incon- 

 veniently hot in the bath. To obviate the necessity of raking 

 the fire from under the boiler, a flue may be so constructed as 

 to carry off" the heat directly into the chimney ; but this is 

 uneconomical and not very convenient. When, therefore, I 

 use this bath, I proceed as follows : — I heat the water in it, 

 about an hour before it is to be used, to about 100°, and the 

 fire below is then put out. The water will retain its tem- 

 perature, or nearly so, for three or four hours, especially if the 

 bath be shut up with a cover, so that when about to use it, I 

 let in cold water till the temperature is lowered to the required 

 point, and we thus avoid all the above inconveniences. 



Another disadvantage of this bath arises from too fierce a 

 fire having been made under the boiler, so as to occasion the 

 water to boil within it, which ought always to be carefully 

 avoided. In that case, the steam rising to the upper part of^ 

 the boiler, and into the pipe D, condenses there, and 

 occasions violent concussions, the noise of which often alarms 

 the whQle house, and leads to apprehensions of an explosion. 



