THE KURA.!* NEW-YORKER 
805 
Farm Engineering 
Homemade Vacuum Cleaner. 
I am working on an apparatus similar 
to the bicycle grinder described on page 
479, but instead of a grinder I wish to 
use a fan properly closed in for suction 
work such as a vacuum cleaner. I 
planned to use a lSYs or 16-inch fan, 
such as is used on automobiles. Can 
you advise me if I can create vacuum or 
suction enough with this to operate 12 or 
15 feet of hose? I intend to turn the 
outfit by hand. A. G. B. 
Port Jefferson, N. Y. 
The ordinary vacuum cleaner uses a 
fan that works on an entirely different 
principle than does the fan behind the 
radiator of an automobile. The automo¬ 
bile fan is composed of blades radiating 
from the hub of the fan, the blades 
being set at an angle with the 
plane of rotation. It is similar to a 
windmill or an electric fan and is de¬ 
signed for forcing an unconfined blast of 
air. i.e., it is designed to run without a 
casing of any kind or to be put in a 
cylinder with open ends, the axis of the 
fan being parallel to that of the cylinder. 
To be efficient the intake and discharge 
openings should, at least, nearly equal 
the diameter of the fan. As the fan re- 
Arrangement of Suction Fan. Fig. 298. 
volves in this cylindrical casing with 
open ends a current of air is drawn 
through it in much the same way that a 
bolt is turned through a nut. A similar 
case would be the current of water forced 
out behind a boat by the screw. The air 
is received and discharged in a direction 
parallel to the axis of the fan, the speed 
of the air current being determined by 
the “pitch” of the fan blade (the angle 
that it makes with the axis of the fan) 
and the speed. 
The fan of the vacuum cleaner as 
shown in the diagram is designed along 
entirely different lines. It is similar in 
shape and action to the centrifugal pump. 
A more common example of a fan of this 
kind would be the blower in a blacksmith 
shop or that of an silage cutter. In 
these fans the air is received at the center 
where the velocity is relatively low and 
discharged at the circumference where it 
is high in a direction tangent to it. 
These fans are designed to discharge 
through smaller openings than the one 
mentioned by A. G. B. and would be 
more suitable for this use. They create 
the air current by centrifugal force, the 
force that causes the water to fly from a 
grindstone, the silage to go up the pipe 
from the blower or the cream to leave the 
milk in the cream separator. This last 
is possible because of the difference in 
weight of the two, the force acting in a 
greater degree on the heavier bodies. 
I am rather skeptical about the re¬ 
sult of this experiment. The excessively 
high speed of the fan will make good 
balance and fine bearings a necessity. 
Some of these machines have a speed 
well around 10,000 revolutions per min¬ 
ute, the fan in this case is smaller 
though, about six inches in diameter, and 
the larger one mentioned by A. G. B. 
would allow of a big reduction in speed. 
I cannot advise as to the effect of the 
hose other than to have it as large in 
diameter as possible and strong enough 
to prevent its collapsing. The ordinary 
portable cleaner is designed to operate 
without hose on all floor work because 
of the fact that the internal friction of 
the hose cuts down the power of the 
fan. I would suggest a fan taken from 
a forge or at least one of similar design, 
rather than the one suggested by A. G. B. 
Why not work out a cleaner along the 
lines of a bellows, having the valves open 
outward instead of inward? It seems 
that it would make a more portable ar¬ 
rangement and one more likely to be suc¬ 
cessful. k. h. s. 
Plastering Stone Wall. 
I have a basement barn, which has a 
north wall about seven feet high, and a 
west wall about six feet high. These 
walls are sound, but were laid up with all 
sizes and kinds of stone, and are very 
rough. I would like to smooth them up ; 
it will take mortar or cement two to three 
inches thick to do a good job. Can mor¬ 
tar be used, or must I build a form of 
boards the required distance from the 
wall and turn in cement? Will cement 
or mortar stick to the stones well? I 
wish to make a good smooth wall, so it 
can be whitewashed over much better. 
Barkhamsted, Conn. c. it. 
By thoroughly wetting the wall before 
applying the mortar it will stick to the 
stones, if properly made. Pei’haps you 
can remove some of the worst inequalities 
by chipping off projecting stones and 
thus save the expense of building a wood¬ 
en form. I have patched the plaster on 
an old basement wall with cement mortar, 
having no trouble in making it stick, and 
have no doubt that you can satisfactorily 
plaster your wall with properly tempered 
mortar. M. B. D. 
Mending Celluloid. 
Is there any way to mend articles 
made of celluloid? A. P. S. 
Lockport, N. Y. 
Articles made from celluloid are of so 
many kinds and designed for so many 
uses that it would be impossible to give 
a means of mending all of them. If the 
articles referred to by A. P. S. are of 
the ordinary sheet celluloid construction, 
and subject to little handling, they may 
be mended with any of the good brands 
of prepared liquid glue. Rub the surfaces 
to be united with sandpaper, making them 
rough, to give the glue a chance to take 
hold, and apply a thin coat of glue, pre¬ 
ferably hot, to both pieces; then unite, 
rub them together to work the glue into 
the scratches made by the sandpaper, and 
place under heavy pressure to dry. If 
well done this repair will stand a certain 
amount of handling and use, and can also 
be washed, provided that the water is not 
too hot, or that the piece is not left in 
the water too long. Much of the suc¬ 
cess of the repair depends upon the way 
the glue is applied and the pressure used 
to hold it. Where the repair is hidden, 
the hollow brass rivets (such as are 
sometimes used in fastening papers to¬ 
gether) can be used. These can be ob¬ 
tained at nearly any stationery store. 
Rivets similar to these have been used 
with good results here, in making con¬ 
tainers from sheet celluloid in which to 
exhibit seed grains, etc. it. h. s. 
Grounding Lightning Rods. 
I am thinking of putting lightning rods 
rods on my barns. On one of the barns 
where I must ground rods it is only 
about two feet to rock. Will it be safe 
so to ground them? I suppose I mtist 
be sure of permanent moisture where 
grounded. I could dig trench a few feet 
and carry ground connection into barn¬ 
yard. Is no further to rock, but yard is 
covered with litter and probably ground 
would be moist. Agent claims that as 
long as we strike rock it will be safe so 
to ground it, even at two feet. c. N. 
Brockport, X. Y. 
The essential thing in grounding light¬ 
ning rods is to reach permanently moist 
earth with the ground connections. I 
would consider it preferable to ground the 
conductors under the drip of the eaves, or 
of a water spout, rather than to carry 
the wires into a barnyard, unless in¬ 
vestigation showed that the earth in the 
yard retained its moisture beneath the 
litter. You will find the whole matter 
thoroughly discussed in a bulletin pub¬ 
lished by the U. S. Department of Agri¬ 
culture and entitled “Recent Practice 
in the Erection of Lightning Conduc¬ 
tors.” This bulletin may be obtained by 
sending 10 cents in coin to the Depart¬ 
ment at Washington, D. C. and will be 
found well worth study by those con¬ 
templating erceting lightning rods. 
M. B. D. 
First Boy (contemptuously): “Huh! 
Your mother takes in washiu’.” Second 
Boy: “O’ course. You didn’t suppose 
she’d leave it hanging out at night un¬ 
less your father was in prison, did ye?” 
—Cardiff Times. 
Believes in 
White Lead 
Mr. Parduhn became a farmer 
in 1893. He now owns a 920 acre 
stock and grain farm. 
The house is modern, with a 
heating plant and water system. 
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If you want to paint for both 
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Materials for a test that will help 
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Address our nearest office for Painting 
Aids No. 297. 
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MACHINE 
An Armco Roof £s 
Lightning Proof 
U,Jllltjj mi uuiuljunj.uuiiiiujj. 
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licensed Manufacturers under Patents 
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• A** 
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r You getit without argument under'^_ 
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Lincoln Ave. Grove City « Pa* 
