526 AGRICULTURAL ENGINEERING 



in its favor. Although coal requires less labor, wood is a 

 clean and very desirable fuel. In certain sections of the 

 country the fuel used is mainly corn cobs and other trash, and 

 the stoves used are the so-called air-tight stoves which have 

 a large magazine into which a bushel or more fuel may be 

 placed at one time. This magazine obviates the necessity of 

 feeding the fuel at short intervals. There is, however, some 

 danger from the explosion of the gas which is generated from 

 fresh fuel before the flames start. The heat of the smoulder- 

 ing fire upon which fresh fuel is placed drives off certain 

 combustible gases, which are ignited as soon as a flame 

 starts up. 



By far the most satisfactory stove for the cold winters of 

 the North is the hard-coal burner. When of sufficient size 

 and well designed, with a good large magazine, the hard-coal 

 burner may be used to heat several rooms to a comfortable 

 temperature. The high cost of hard or anthracite coal in 

 certain sections of the country renders the use of such a heater 

 quite expensive. 



Radiators. In houses equipped with stoves an upper 

 room can be comfortably heated by extending the stove pipe 

 into the room and providing a radiator. This plan is highly 

 commendable, as there is no additional expense connected 

 with its use other than the cost of the radiator, which should 

 not exceed $8, the value of a good one. 



Warm-Air Furnaces. Heating houses by means of warm- 

 air furnaces does not differ materially from the use of stoves. 

 The furnace is simply a large stove placed in the basement, 

 with pipes to convey the heated air to the various rooms 

 above. By placing the furnace in the basement many of the 

 objections to the stove are overcome. First, the dirt con- 

 nected with the firing and cleaning is kept where it is least 

 objectionable. Proper circulation of the air may be secured 



