30 



The Weekly Florists' Review* 



DECEMBER S, 189S. 



his profession are not imposed upon 

 the gardener or person entrusted with 

 the responsibility of the proper care 

 of the fires, this objection carries no 

 weight. The other oljjection is the 

 slight increase of fuel consumption; 

 this is the case with small houses and 

 particularly where boilers of inade- 

 quate capacity are used, but on larger 

 ranges, and particularly where boilers 

 arranged for the consumption of the 

 cheaper grades of fuel are used, ihe 

 point of fuel economy is on the side of 

 steam heating. 



The hot-water system of heating, 

 which consists of a circulation of hot 

 water through pipes within the green- 

 house, has claim to two good points, 

 first, should any accident happen to the 

 fire in the boiler, the heat contained in 

 the body of water within the pipes is 

 often sufficient to maintain a safe tem- 

 perature in the house even after the 

 fire has become very low or out en- 

 tirely, and also, that so long as there 

 is any fire in the boiler, its radiant 

 heat is carried into the greenhouses. 

 Therefore the temperature of the air 

 in the greenhouse is less liable to be 

 materially affected by any temporary 

 variation in the intensity of the fires. 

 which is a great advantage on small 

 places where the management of the 

 fires is liable to neglect. 



The objection to the hot-water sys- 

 tem, is that tlie temperature of the ra- 

 diating pipes is slow to respond to the 

 desires of the operator, the heat con- 

 tained by the large body of water pre- 

 venting the prompt cooling of the 

 pipes when desired, and the body of 

 water also being so slow Jn responding 

 to increased firing, thus preventing a 

 sudden increase in the temperature of 

 the pipes when necessary. The heat- 

 ing by hot-water, however, is effected 

 by two methods, one in whicli the 

 ■water is circulated through large cast 

 iron pipes, usually 4 inches in diame- 

 ter, for which the advantage claimed 

 is steady heat under fluctuating condi- 

 tions of fire, which benefit, however, 

 is more than counterbalanced by the 

 absence of the possibility of prompt 

 and perfect control. The cost of in- 

 stallation of this system is the great- 

 ■est. The other system is that in which 

 the water is circulated through small 

 pipes, which, containing a lesser quan- 

 tity of water, modifies both the advan- 

 tages and objections present in the 

 ■other systems mentioned. 



After carefully considering all points 

 ■of advantage and otherwise, I place the 

 several systems of heating in the fol- 

 lowing merit: For general commer- 

 «ial work, and in large private ranges 

 ■where fires will receive reasonable at- 

 tention, steam is preferable. Next in 

 order of preference I would place hot- 

 •water in small pipes, occupying as it 

 'does a portion midway between hot- 

 ■water in large pipes and the steam 

 ■system, both in its advantages and dis- 

 advantages, and also in cost. The 

 third position is occupied by hot-water 

 in large pipes, this being, however, 

 ipreferable on places where the atten- 



tion to fires is liable to be variable, 

 and also for use in small greenhouses. 

 On large ranges, even where the reg- 

 ular heating system consists of a hot- 

 water plant, the installation of a steam 

 boiler connected, to, say, one coil of 1- 

 inch pipe in each of the houses, will 

 be found of immen&e advantage; espe- 

 cially is this the case with rose houses. 

 I doubt if there is a rose grower pres- 

 ent, who heats with hot-water, who 

 has not felt the want of such an addi- 

 tion to his heating plant, especially 

 during the fall and spring months, 

 wli?n tlie weather conditions are such 

 as to favor mildew, the conditions of 

 steam heat and the possibility of evap- 

 orating sulphur on the pipes tliat are 

 heated, giving him one of the most 

 powerful weapons for the warding off 

 and destruction of the semi-annual 

 pest — mildew. 



We will now consider the distribu- 

 tion and arrangement of piping best 

 suited for several systems. For steam 

 I prefer to carry the steam direct from 

 the boiler to the highest point, and 

 then descend on a continual down- 

 grade back to the boiler, making an 

 entire circuit of the house with at 

 least one-inch pipe, but preferably 

 with two, and arrange such coils as 

 may be necessary in the most con- 

 venient locations for securing the de- 

 sired temperature in all parts of the 

 house. The object of making at least 

 one circuit of the house, is that in mild 

 weather a little heat can be provided, 

 which will affect all parts of the house 

 as evenly as possible, which could not 

 be done with a flow and return coil 

 under one bench, as when the radia- 

 tion from two pipes would be ample to 

 produce the desired temperature, this 

 heat would necessarily be given off on 

 one side of the house to the neglect of 

 the other. This single circuit pipe is 

 also very convenient for the sulphur- 

 ing operation to which I just referred. 



In steam heating the coils are pre- 

 ferably of one and one and a quarter 

 inch pipes, and all coils should be 

 valved so as to admit of the most ab- 

 solute control. In installing a steam 

 heating plant, the most vital point, as 

 regards its perfect working, is to ar- 

 range for perfect and positive drainage 

 of all pipes. If this point is attended 

 to a noiseless and perfect circulating 

 system is easily provided. In a hot- 

 water plant, it is very necessary to 

 provide mains of ample capacity to 

 carry off and return the water to the 

 boiler as rapidly as the boiler is able 

 to heat it to a temperature of about 

 200 degrees, and to make all runs from 

 the mains as direct as possible. Mains 

 should have a grade upwards from the 

 boiler of about 1 inch in 5 feet, if pos- 

 sible, and running pipes of 1 inch in 

 10 feet or not less than 1 inch in 20 

 feet. 



Expansion tanks should not be 

 placed at the far or upper end of the 

 houses, as they not only occupy much 

 valuable bench space, but add to the 

 risk of damage to plants in case of a 

 sudden splash over of the heated water 

 and they also allow of an escape of 



steam, which if retained within the 

 pipes would add to the temperature of 

 the radiation from them. A short stand 

 pipe should be placed at the upper ends 

 of all runs, and fitted with a valve or 

 cock for the relief of any accumula- 

 tion of air; the expansion tank may 

 be placed at any convenient point in 

 the workroom, with a connection to 

 the return pipe of the boiler only, and 

 should be fitted with a gauge by which 

 the height of the water is readily ob- 

 served by the attendant. Where 2-inch 

 diameter pipes are used, the tank 

 should be placed at as great a height 

 as convenient, so as to increase the 

 pressure of the water in the pipes and 

 thus allow of the water being raised 

 to a temperature approaching very 

 nearly the boiling point, a great advan- 

 tage in extra severe weather. 



Whether it be in a steam or hot- 

 water heating system, I am somewhat 

 in favor of a little overhead heating 

 surface. This is not necessarily for 

 regular winter firing, but for use on 

 those damp, foggy, muggy days, when 

 bottom heat is not required, but when 

 a little overhead ■n'armth to temper 

 and dry out the atmosphere is much 

 to be desired. 



We now come to the question of 

 boilers. The purchase of a boiler for 

 heating the new house, causes the av- 

 erage greenhouse man more worry and 

 anxiety than any other feature in the 

 necessary equipment of his houses, but 

 if he will give due consideration to 

 these few vital points, the question be- 

 comes an easy one to solve. The ques- 

 tion of first cost must become a sec- 

 ondary one, that of heating results 

 and fuel economy being the primary 

 ones. 



A direct and upward travel of the 

 fire and products of combustion means 

 a quick travel and consequently loss 

 of heat into the chimney, so I would 

 say positively avoid such boilers as 

 have only a direct or upward travel 

 for fire. Horizontal travel of the fire 

 h »at is slower, and therefore more 

 e ifective, and in boilers having such 

 direction of fire a longer flue surface 

 is possible, and therefore the heating 

 surface and consequent fuel economy 

 is increased. 



Downward travel of fire heat is, 

 however, still slower than the hori- 

 zontal, and consequently boilers in 

 which such travel is provided in rea- 

 sonable extent are much to be de- 

 sired. Also bear in mind that the low- 

 er surface of horizontal flues is little, 

 and under the ordinary condition.^ of 

 cleanliness of no value, the sides and 

 top surfaces of such flues being the 

 affected parts, therefore, a deep verti- 

 cal flue is of more economic value than 

 a wide one. A deep firebox is desira- 

 ble, as are also ample firedoors and 

 doors which will give a free and unob- 

 structed access to all parts of the flues 

 for the purpose of cleaning. For this 

 purpose holes just large enough to ad- 

 mit a brush are of no practical value, 

 the means of access must be such that 

 render all parts of the flue visible. 



If you are purchasing a boiler from 



