298 THE FARM MILK HOUSE 



ten-gallon shipping- can (fourteen inches in diameter and twenty 

 inches high). 



Two-inch wood makes a good tank. The extra expense in- 

 curred in providing thick non-conducting walls is soon repaid by 

 improved quality in the cream or a saving of ice. 



Milk and cream become sour and otherwise damaged through 

 the action of certain bacteria. To grow at all rapidly, all bac- 

 teria require a temperature of at least 55 degrees F. Cream 

 keeps sweet more easily than milk, yet it will sour quickly if 

 allowed to stand at a temperature of 55 degrees or warmer. To 

 remain sweet for several days, even very clean cream must be 

 held at a temperature of 50 degrees or lower. The ordinary 

 kitchen ice chest seldom cools to a temperature lower than 55 

 degrees and is more often at 60 degrees. To keep milk most 

 efficiently the cans or bottles should be placed into water in 

 which chunks of ice are floating (Fig. 131). 



Deep well water is usually cold enough in the northern 

 states so that if caused to flow around the cans of cream the 

 temperature of the whole may be very cheaply held low enough, 

 but when such an arrangement is impractical ice should be used 

 in the tanks of water, in which case insulation of the tank is 

 especially desirable. 



A sterilizer of some sort is essential in the production and 

 delivery of good milk or cream. A steam jet through the drain 

 board of the sink is ample for most farm dairy needs, but a gal- 

 vanized iron oven, or a tight room, preferably made of cement, is 

 a good investment, since in these ovens all of the dairy tools may 

 be subjected to the purifying influence of live steam. 



LOCATION 



The milk room should not be located in the barn, but should 

 be close to the door through which the milk can be most con- 

 veniently brought (Fig. 94). It is essential, however, that good 

 drainage be provided. It is desirable that the space between the 

 barn and the milk house be sufficiently wide to permit a wagon to 

 be easily driven between. The sidewalk leading from the barn 

 door to the milk room door may be covered if desired. Not 

 infrequently the entire space between the barn and the milk 



