CHAPTER VIII.

WATER-CLOSETS AND DRAINS.

House-pipes. The various pipes which carry away the refuse water from the house, whether from sinks, from slop-sinks, or from water-closets, are called house-pipes. the water flows from them into other channels which conduct it to a cesspool or sewer. House drains consist of the pipes connecting the house-pipes with the cesspool or

sewer.

The legal definition of a drain according to the Public Health Act, 1875:

"Drain means any drain of and used for the drainage of one building only, or premises within the same curtilage, and made merely for communicating therefrom with a cesspool or like receptacle for drainage, or with a sewer into which the drainage of two or more buildings or premises occupied by different persons is conveyed.'

According to this act a sewer is a drain receiving the drainage of two or more buildings, while under the Public Health Act Amendments Act, 1890, the combined drain is only called a sewer if the houses belong to one owner. (The reason for such distinctions is that Sewers are repaired by the Sanitary Authority, and drains are repairable at the owner's expense.)

House-pipes may be made of iron, lead, zinc, or earthenware. Iron pipes are the best. They should always be placed so as to be easily inspected, otherwise there is danger in case of leakage. No house-pipe (except the soil-pipe from the W.C.) should enter the drain directly, but should open over a channel leading to a gully-trap which connects with the drain, and the opening should be at least 18 inches from the gully. The reason why the pipes should not open over the gully is that the danger of sewer-gas passing up the house-pipes may be removed.

Sinks.

These are the ordinary kitchen or scullery sinks, and may be made of glazed stoneware, or of wood lined with copper or lead. They should not be made of porous stone. If lead or copper is used, it should not be too thin, as the extra cost of a thick metal is very small for an ordinary sink and is easily saved in repairs. Copper is brighter and has a cleaner appearance than lead. Glazed stoneware sinks are the best, but they are rather destructive to glass and crockery.

The bottom of the sink should slope to a grating, which should be fitted in a cup-shaped depression in which a plug may be inserted for flushing purposes. An overflow pipe should be provided, for use in case the supply-pipe is left running when the plug is in. The waste-pipe must be of the full width of the grating where it leaves the sink, but may taper to 1 inches from that point. Just below the sink it should be provided with a siphon-trap having a 3 inch water-seal, and fitted with a screw-cap for cleaning. The pipe should open outside, in the air, not into a soilpipe. The waste-pipe and the overflow pipe should each be 1 inches in diameter throughout.

Slop-sinks.

These are used for pouring waste water down, and are especially useful in the absence of a W.C. See fig. 47, page 180, which shows a recent form of slop-sink. They generally consist of a basin, either of enamelled iron or glazed earthenware, fitted up in a manner similar to a watercloset, except that the waste-pipe need not be so wide as a soil-pipe 2 inches to 24 inches being sufficient. A grating is necessary to prevent cleaning utensils or materials (soap, etc.) from passing down the waste-pipe. The slop-sink should be provided with a flushing cistern like that of a water-closet. In many houses there is no special slop-sink, and the water-closet is used instead. There are no objections to this custom if reasonable care be taken; the lid should be hinged and should always be raised before the slop-pail is emptied into the closet so that no nuisance will arise.

Baths.

The bathroom should be placed near the outside of the house so that waste water can readily be carried away. It is becoming customary to place a bath and a water-closet in the same room. The objections to this are: (1) the W.C. is unavailable for other members of the household when the bath is used, and (2) the person taking a bath breathes impure air, if there is anything wrong with the W.C. fittings. Bathrooms should be well-ventilated. The floors should be covered with some impervious material (oil-cloth or linoleum will prove satisfactory), and have a cork mat beside the bath. The walls should also have a covering impervious to moisture or the steam from a hot bath when condensed will be absorbed.

The waste-pipe from the bath should be completely disconnected from the drains, in the same manner as sinkpipes, that is (a) with a siphon-trap near the bath, and (b) the waste-pipe either joining another (which opens in the air) or itself ending in the open air. An overflow pipe also should be provided. In some cases, a safe or tray is fixed under the bath, as a precaution against possible accidents, such as overflow pipe being blocked or a pipe bursting.

The waste-pipes from lavatory basins should be fixed with the same precautions as in the case of baths or sinks. If the waste-pipes from several basins enter into a common one, each basin should be separately trapped, and have an air-pipe to prevent siphonage.

Water-Closets.

These are used to get rid of excreta by means of a flush of water, which carries it along a soil-pipe and drain into a sewer.

An arrangement is required which will :—

(1) Prevent any sewer-gas passing into the house;
(2) Not become foul itself and cause a bad smell;
(3) Produce a good flush of water, when required,
without waste.

The chief kinds of water-closets are-(1) the pan, (2) the long hopper, (3) the valve, (4) the plug, (5) the short

the

hopper, (6)
wash-out, and (7)

BASIN

the

wash - down

water, which is sup

posed to act as a water-seal and prevent foul air escaping. Each time it is used the hinged pan is tilted down, and

BASIN

SOIL

PIPE

Fig. 49.--LONG HOPPER CLOSET.

discharges its contents into the container. The sides of the container are inaccessible for cleaning and the upper portions are out of reach of the flushing action of the pan, and thus they gradually become coated with a filthy deposit. When the pan is swinging down there is no longer a water-seal, and a gust of foul air rises from the container each time it is used.

If the water dries up or the pan becomes foul a bad smell is caused. To make

matters worse, the container frequently opens into a "D"