January, 1914 
HOUSE AND GARDEN 
69 
How to Go About Planning Your 
Home 
(Continued from page 24 ) 
house will be more economical. 
You should now be prepared with a 
plan study expressing all desires, fortified 
with notes on the site for house, its en¬ 
vironment, required appointments, char¬ 
acter of materials of construction and 
finish so as to enable your selected archi¬ 
tect to develop the exterior, modifying the 
plan requirements to the design. Now 
comes the preparing of practical working 
drawings, details and specifications, in 
which the material and construction will 
be intelligently specified, thus enabling 
and ensuring the receipt of competitive 
estimates from general contractors, all 
figuring on a standard basis. 
Under no circumstances should a man 
of any other vocation be his own archi¬ 
tect; there are too many pitfalls and thou¬ 
sands of costly examples, also sad exper¬ 
iences, which the layman has suffered; 
expensive changes and extras avoided will 
be more costly than the fee of a profes¬ 
sional adviser. 
Study the plans illustrated; they will 
not only bring out the desirable points of 
planning but will give new ideas of plan 
variation. 
Many Inventions for the House- 
Builder 
(Continued from page 17) 
In connection with heating are several 
other appliances for maintaining a uni¬ 
form temperature. One is the Thermo¬ 
stat ; a small instrument placed on the 
wall of the room. An indicator is set at 
the desired temperature, which is reg¬ 
istered on a dial. A change of a degree 
-'fifects a sensitive metal strip, causing it 
cither to expand or contract. When it 
touches either of two points it closes an 
electric circuit, which releases a motor 
driven by a weight in the cellar. This 
operates the furnace draft until the de¬ 
sired temperature is again reached, when 
the sensitized metal strip expands, stops 
the motor and leaves the drafts at the 
proper position. A clock attachment 
makes it possible to have the heat control¬ 
ler set for a lower temperature at night, but 
changes the indicator at a given hour in 
the morning, in time to have the room at 
a comfortable temperature when one 
arises. 
The Regitherm is another simple de¬ 
vice of this sort. Its indicator for the 
degree of temperature to be maintained is 
controlled by a key. An extremely sen¬ 
sitized liquid is contained in a fine brass 
bellows within the device. A change in 
temperature creates a force which ex¬ 
pands these sealed bellows. The tiny frac¬ 
tion of their movement is sufficiently great 
to move a balanced lever arm. By a 
mechanical principle this slight force is 
multiplied so that passing down a chain 
Install This Vacuum 
Cleaning System 
In Your New Home 
It is a simple matter when 
building to have the house 
piped for a Western Electric 
Stationary Vacuum Cleaner, 
running the suction pipe from 
cellar to rooms, inside the 
walls, along with the water, heat and waste pipes. From 
this suction pipe neat inlets open through the baseboard in 
each room, to which the cleaning hose is quickly attached. 
These inlets do not protrude from the baseboard to collide 
with furniture. They have hinged covers which drop 
over the inlet when not in use. The 
Western < Electric 
Stationary Vacuum Cleaner 
denotes the most modern home. When ready to clean lift the cover of 
the inlet, attach the hose, press a button starting the electric motor-fan 
combination in the cellar, and down goes every particle of dust and 
dirt into the collector. After that room is cleaned, stop the motor, take 
out the hose and start cleaning in the next room. 
Perfectly simple! Equally simple is the mechanism. No gears, no 
bellows — nothing to wear out or leak. Just a motor and fan on one 
shaft and an ample dust bag. Best of all, no dirt passes through the 
fan—no clogging. All these things result from the application of the 
best engineering skill. 
Another Electrical Necessity 
Write to us tor our booklet describing these home 
essentials. Our engineers will be glad to consult 
with you or your architect. When writing address 
our nearest house and ask for booklet No. I42-A 
This shows the inlet for 
the hose and the simple 
method of attaching it 
for cleaning. 
Every part of the West¬ 
ern Electric-Sturtevant 
Stationary Vacuum 
Cleaner system reflects 
the same simplicity and 
ease of operation. It 
cleans efficiently. 
A complete line of port¬ 
able cleaners in six 
sizes. 
It is important when building the new home to 
provide a means for intercommunication between 
the rooms. Speaking tubes are obsolete. 
Buzzers are inefficient. Complete convenience 
demands the Inter-phone. 
Run the wires while the house is being built. Then, 
even though you maynot wish to install Inter-phones 
at once, you can use the wires temporarily for push¬ 
button calls. A wall-plate device-something new — 
like the one shown, can be used and the Inter-phones 
“plugged” in later on without running new wires. 
WESTERN ELECTRIC COMPANY 
Manufacturers of the 7,500,000 “Bell” Telephones 
EQUIPMENT FOR EVERY ELECTRICAL NEED 
Main Office: New York City Branch Houses: All Principal Cities 
Agents Everywhere 
IRON AND WIRE FENCES 
Fences of all descriptions for City 
and Suburban Homes. Write to-dav 
for our Loose Leaf Catalog, and 
state briefly your requirements. 
American Fence Constriction Co. 
100 Church St, New York 
For the present, and while 
they last, we will send you 
by Parcel Post prepaid this 
beautiful Bracket Wren House 
No. 17 for $1.00 including our 
Booklet on Bird Contrivances. 
Six for $5.00 and one Booklet. 
Among a large number of Bird 
Houses on our ground In 1913 the 
Wrens made this their first choice. 
THE CRESCENT CO. 
“Birdville" Toms River, N. J. 
Sketch of the Fireplace 
designed and erected by 
us in the Studio of J. C. 
Leyendecker. Esq.. New 
York. 
We have a splendid collection 
of Fireplaces modeled in Pom¬ 
peian Stone. Original designs 
promptly and carefully followed. 
Our large illustrated Cata¬ 
logue, full of home and garden 
ornament suggestions sent free. 
The Erkins Studios 
The Largest Manufacturers of 
Ornamental Stone. 
226 Lexington Ave, New York 
Factory, Astoria, L. I. 
In writing to advertisers please mention House & Garden. 
