28 N. H. Agr. Experiment Station [Bulletin 280 



on tractors. Two standard tractors in use on the college farm were 

 equipped with two different sizes of these tires, and a few preliminaiy 

 trials were run before freezing weather set in. First tests indicate that 

 these tires will provide adequate traction under any and all condi- 

 tions if supplemented, in wet and slippery weather, with a recently 

 developed special type of tractor-tire chain-lug. 



A satisfactoiy job of plowing was done through a bog hole where 

 water stood to a depth at which the plows were completely submerged 

 in turning the furrow. 



The additional cost of tire and steel equipment, cost of upkeep, de- 

 preciation and similar practical operating problems are to be studied to 

 detennine whether the investment is justified in economies affected and 

 improved operating features. {Purnell Fund) 



Steel Tractor Wheel Equipment 



Tests of a new design of steel tractor wheels were conducted in the 

 summer of 1933. The equipment is designed to permit the clamping 

 on of two large flat rims over the lug equipment so that travel on 

 hard surfaced roads may be accomplished \nthout damage to the road 

 surface. On flat macadam roads, with reasonable loads, no particular 

 difficulty was experienced, and the equipment was satisfactory. On 

 grades and on gravel surfaced roads wheel slippage was excessive, and 

 the difficulty of steering increased. Whereas the rims are designed to 

 be demountable with reasonable ease, the frequent changing of these 

 road-rims proved bothersome, especially where the type of road varies 

 frequently. With road rims removed, the steel lug equipment per- 

 formed satisfactorily under field conditions. Continued tests of the 

 ecjuijiment are to be made by W. T. Ackerman and G. M. Foulkrod. 

 {State Fund) 



Electric Water Heating and Sterilization 



The heating of water for washing, rinsing and sterilizing dairy uten- 

 sils is a problem confronting most dairy farmers. In tests made by 

 W. T. Ackerman and H. N. Colby of 5, 10 and 30 gallon electrically 

 heated tanks of various sizes and kinds, 5 and 10 gallon electrically 

 heated open-top tanks were found particularly suited to provide the 

 necessary hot water, and to sterilize the smaller essential parts of milk- 

 ing equipment at a moderate investment cost and a reasonable cost 

 of operation. In the case of one farm test, the owTier found that 

 the savings in the cost of rubber equipment for the period of a year, 

 as compared to the older method of boiling these rubber parts in a 

 washboiler on the stove, was sufficient to pay considerable part of the 

 current bill. 



Electrically heated cabinet sterilizers employing the combination of 

 moist air turning to dry air, operating at a temperature of approxi- 

 mately 170°, have also been found to provide a higher degree of steri- 

 lization and also a sanitary storage space for the equipment after 

 this process. Their higher initial cost retards their adoption by many 

 farmers, particularly at this time. (State Fund) 



