St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1871-04-28
IIUW IHc burlington rec HOE
DtHUf are rrP DpiULiNU:

The communication from Prof. Col
Hcr below, touches matter of the first
Importance TO cur citizens. We rcceiv-
ed several days since Il communication
from one of our citizens, expressing ap-
prehension of serious injury to the health
of the community, from the action OF the
city water upon the galvanized iron pipe
so extensively used for service pipe in
bringing the city water from the street
mains TO the dwellings, and enclosing
an article from the ,Jo.audi ct H-n.,>i,n
stating that the formation of salts of zinc
was rapid in ordinary aqucduct water
conveyed in galvanized iron pipes, and
that it was still mare rapid in water
which has stood in c,mcm pipes We
reserved this communication, penlinG
the experiments in progress 10y Professor
Collier, and it is not now at han !, or
we would print it. 1t will be seen that
Prof. Golfers experiments 90 10 confirm
the statements made as 10 the dangerous
consequences of using the galvanized pipe.
He finds that the city water acts with
great activity ON the ZInc coating of the
galvanized iron,-with greater activity
indeed, than either distilled water, or or
dinary wcll-watcr. 1t is only necessary
to add, that the salts of zinc 50 formed
are unqucStionably dclctcripus to health
they form rs we understand, 4 slow
and culmulativc poison-to show that
this is matter in regard to which the
.,tt
1t is to be notc'l, however, tha: these
experiments do not exactly conform in
all respects TO the conditions under
which the city water is used. The trials,
TO be exactly parallel, we should say,
should be made, not with slips of galvan-
lied iron, but with the pipe, as used. 1t
may be that the galvanic action would
be more rapid in the case of an immersed
slip, than in the case of piece of pipe,
well coated with zinc and exposing no
naked iron to the water. We under
stand that since his communication was
sent in to us, Prof. Collier has examined
some galvanized pipe which has been in
use for five or six years, and in which
the inside coating of zinc, instead of be-
ing wholly corrOded and gone, as we
might expect, was found in good condi-
ton and protected in measure from the
action of the water by Il deposit ofinsolu-
bic oxide of zinc. 1t may be that such
Il process can, rs Il rule, be expected to
countcract in time the action of the wa
ter on the zinc. The subject ought to
be fully investigated, and if the city
should order some further experiments
to determine points still in doubt, we
think nobody would object.
EFFECT OF TIE CITY WATER ON GALvAN-
IZED PIPES.
BURLINGTON, April 13.
Editor Of Free Press Dear Sir Il
have recently been making some investi-
cations as to the effect of Galvanized
iron' So o-called, upon the water of our
city. and think that you may regard the
matter to be of public interest, since so
many of our citizens are using reservoirs
and pi pes of the material experimental
with.
made three different experiments-in
No. l, with pure distilled water in No
,, with we'll water from the College
pump; in No. ;, with reservoir water
OF each sample l took % cubic inches,
and in each immersed a slip of the
"galvanized iron," having surface of
80 square inches.
The vessels containing these were al
lowed TO stand in a moderately warm
room. At the end of three hours the
waller OF each sample had become decid-
edly "milky," due to the formation of
oxide and carbonate of zinc. At the
end of three days, quite heavy precipi-
tatos had collected in each vessel, the
sheets of metal showing signs of corros-
ion. Upon weighing the salts of zinc
thus formed there was found as follows ::
No. l, 30 of grain No. ,, .49 of a
grain No. 3, 81 Of grain-in each
case an amount sufficient to occasion the
gravest apprehension.
PETER COLLIER.