CONSTKUCTIOlSr AND FIRE PROTFXJTTON OF COTTON" WAREHOUSES. 25 



Doors in the exterior wall may be of several different types. In 

 most instances the sliding- door is to be preferred as. it is easy to 

 operate and may be fitted close to the wall. An excellent door of this 

 type i$ shown in Plate XIII, figure 2. Here the door is composed of 

 three layers of wood covered with tin so as to resist the action of fira 

 from either side. The hardware should be such as to hold the door 

 closed even after long exposure to fire. For this reason all hinges, 

 track supports, and other hardware should be built solidly into the 

 wall. Whether or not doors are locked is a question for the manage- 

 ment to decide. Rolling steel doors which slide, or roll up, may be 

 used to good advantage where it is desired to provide -openings near 

 together as for a compress. These doors are extremely neat and 

 resist fire well. They have one serious disadvantage for the storage 

 compartment in that they are difficult of operation from the outside, 

 and it is necessary for the person operating them in this way to stand 

 in the opening until the door is entirely raised. The difficulty here in 

 case smoke or flame had to be contended with is apparent. But for 

 the large compress compartment, with its entrance doors of some other 

 type, these doors are excellent. Photographs of installations of these 

 doors are shown in figure 1, Plate XIII. Swinging doors are usually 

 less desirable than sliding doors as the former are somewhat in the 

 way of trucking and are put out of repair more easily. 



FIRE DOORS. 



Fire doors in the division fire wall should afford high resistance 

 to heat. The construction is similar to those described for the ex- 

 terior wall, with the addition of requirements for automatic closing 

 in case of fire. There are many types of fire doors which may be pur- 

 chased ready to install. All of the doors illustrated by Plate XIV are 

 what is termed "tin-clad" (a wood core covered with tin) except 

 that shown in figure 2, this being a steel rolling door which may be 

 installed in the several manners shown. This door is very neat in 

 appearance and affords good protection. Doors of the sliding or 

 hinged type are also made of sheet steel corrugated and riveted to a 

 framework of steel as shown in Plate XV, figure 1. The tin-clad 

 door referred to is an excellent door for an opening in a division fire 

 wall. It should consist of three layers of boards, each not less than 

 thirteen-sixteenths of an inch thick. The tin covering should be ap- 

 plied independently of the use of solder, the joints being securely 

 locked and nailed. There are many details to be followed in the con- 

 struction to insure the best resistance to fire and positive movement 

 in closing.^ 



^ The door can be built locally by a good tin worker and carpenter, or it can 

 be bougbt ready made. Tlie latter course may be more economical and is nearly 



