38 CONSTRUCTION OF CREAMERIES 



etc., according to availability, financial ability and general prefer- 

 ence may be used. 



Floors. All floors in the operating rooms should be of con- 

 crete with cement surfacing, or similar non-rottable, impervious 

 material. The application of a reliable concrete hardener will 

 greatly help to make the cement more nearly wear-, water-, dust- 

 and crack-proof. On the receiving floor, or platform, where the 

 cream cans are handled, inlaid steel plates, materially protect 

 the floor against excessive wear. 



After finishing, the floors should not be used for at least 

 two weeks. This will permit them to thoroughly harden, a condi- 

 tion which means a great deal to the life and serviceability of any 

 cement floor. The short life of the majority of unsatisfactory 

 cement floors in creameries is due to the fact that they were 

 pressed into service before the cement had properly hardened. 



The cement should be carried up on the walls and partitions 

 at least two inches or more, forming a sanitary cove. In the case 

 of wooden walls and partitions, it is advisable to lath and plaster 

 the bottom four to five feet. 



The floors should slope not less than one eighth of one inch 

 per foot. The slope should be uniform and even throughout, 

 avoiding low places. 



Drainage and Drains. All floors of the manufacturing rooms 

 should slope downward toward the drains, so as to facilitate rapid 

 and complete drainage. Large, water-sealed floor drains should 

 be sufficiently numerous and well placed in all rooms to rapidly 

 carry off the water. The tops of these floor drains should be about 

 one-half inch below the surface of the adjoining floor, so as to 

 catch the water readily. This feature must be personally super- 

 vised by the creamery man, as the average contractor is prone 

 to place the drain top a trifle above the surrounding floor, ex- 

 pecting the water to flow "up hill". In the larger rooms and 

 especially immediately under, or behind the churns, one or more 

 open- drain ditches in the floor, six to ten inches wide, with their 

 outlet to the sewer trapped, by a large bell-trap or other equally 

 efficient water-sealed drain, is preferable. These drain ditches 

 may be placed along the walls, or platform, or both, in order to 

 least interfere with traffic. If located in places over which there 



