952 
In making this test the simplest way is 
to close all openings into the pipe with 
wooden plugs or disks of india rubber 
compressed between two plates of iron 
forced together with a screw. There is 
no especial advantage in applying a great 
head of water, for if a joint is not tight 
it will leak under a head of a few inches. 
It is generally most convenient to test 
the vertical pipe story by story, the plugs 
being inserted through the water closet 
branches. There is probably no occa- 
sion to fear that work once made tight 
will develop leaks for many years, the 
tendency to rust after a time, even with 
tar-coated or enameled pipe, being rath- 
er to close such slight leaks as may 
exist. 
Four inches in diameter is sufficient for 
soil pipe, and the best results are obtain- 
ed by running it full size straight above 
the roof and covering the top with a wire 
basket such as is used to keep leaves out 
of gutters. 
There should always be a trap between 
the house and the sewage disposal plant, 
and there must also be on the house side 
of it an inlet for fresh air. There can be 
no real ventilation of the system if it is 
open only at the top, but a generous inlet 
for fresh air on the drain outside the 
house, in connection with the opening at 
the top of the soil pipe, will insure a 
free movement throughout the whole sys- 
tem. The fresh air inlet must be guard- 
ed from obstruction. It may be brought 
out close to the foundation walls, but not 
too near windows and doors. If the trap 
is formed by the submerging of the inlet 
pipe in the settling chamber of the dis- 
posal system the fresh air inlet should be 
placed close to this. 
The Waste Pipes 
For all minor waste pipes lead pipe is 
used, as it may be bent and cut to suit 
all possible positions and requires but 
few joints. Only “heavy” lead pipe should 
be used. As lead is quite a soft material 
it would not be practicable to use thread 
joints on it, so the joints are made by the 
use of solder. Where lead pipe joins to 
cast iron pipe the connection should be 
made by means of a brass ferrule of the 
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF PRACTICAL HORTICULTURE 
same bore as the lead pipe, and soldered 
to it. The ferrule is introduced into the 
hub of the cast iron pipe and calked tight 
with oakum and lead. 
Heating Systems 
The Ideal System 
The health and comfort of the home 
depends to a considerable extent upon 
the heating apparatus, which, in impor- 
tance, is second only to that of sanitary 
plumbing. Stoves are a development of 
the fireplaces of our ancestors. Their 
waste of fuel, their uncleanliness, and 
their inability to properly heat even one 
room are features recognized by most peo- 
ple. The ideal heating apparatus is one 
that will promptly and continuously sup- 
ply every room in the house with enough 
warm fresh air to make it comfortable in 
the coldest weather. It must be easy to 
manage and not complicated in construc- 
tion. The cost of installing a steam or 
hot water system is more than that of a 
hot air furnace. The amount of fuel used 
by them is less, but for a small house the 
hot air furnace is most often used. It 
has the advantage, too, if properly in- 
stalled, of supplying fresh air, while the 
other systems demand special means for 
ventilation, or dependence must be placed 
entirely upon opening the doors and win- 
dows. 
Furnaces 
A furnace is a stove within a casing of 
galvanized iron or brick. Air is admitted 
to the space between the two and when 
it becomes heated passes through pipes to 
the different rooms of the house. The fur- 
nace may be constructed of cast iron, 
wrought iron, or steel. The cast iron 
furnace has fewer joints than the one 
made of steel plates and will not vary in 
temperature so rapidly. 
Direct and Indirect Draft 
In construction there are two styles, 
the “direct” and the “indirect” draft. The 
better class of the “direct” draft fur- 
naces have a radiator through which the 
hot gases pass on their way to the smoke- 
stack, and so utilize much heat that 
would otherwise be lost. In the “indi- 
rect” draft furnaces the gases pass 
