Portion of a small bathroom showing enamelled lavatory and tub, with painted wails 



CHAPTER XII 

 PLUMBING 



HE plumbing of the country house consists in the method 

 employed to effect the supply of water from its source, 

 carrying it over the house as desired, and of its final disposal 

 in conjunction with the wastes into the sewerage system. 

 Thus it will be seen at a glance that there are two systems, 

 working together and useless when taken singly and yet 

 more or less distinct from one another. There are several 

 things in house construction that one cannot afford to economise on : A good 

 foundation, a dry cellar, a tight and rigid shell, and good plumbing. The doors 

 may be hung with iron hinges, the floors covered with cheap carpeting and the 

 mantels be but the stained imitation of a nobler wood all these accept, but 

 sacrifice not the absolute necessity. 



We will suppose then that the supply has been decided upon and arranged for, 

 and that it has a sufficient "head" to carry it to the desired height and to flow with 

 sufficient force, outside of the calculations of the house system. 



The service pipe should always enter the cellar at a point handy to the source 

 from which the water comes, and not on the opposite side of the house, as perhaps 

 the plumber might wish. This point of entry should also be well below the reach 



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