Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1875-03-17
Heating and Ventilation.

The effective heating of occupied rooms
while, (t> At the present timc) the outdoor
temperature is below zero, mast, we think.
be It comfortable subject. while ventilation
may he more comfortably considered dur
inc the excessive heat of summer.
Heat and cold are said to be "relativc
terms L.: u> explain. If YOU spend
some time in Il brilliantly lighted room.
and then sep INTO one that is but dimlv
lighted. tn" latter will appear quite dark.
Bat in i short time the eye adjusts itself.
and you !ind the room not really dark,
bat only appeared SO. Suppose on the
other hand You were to remain for an
hour in Il very dark room. and then 90 at
once into the dimly lighted room above
nlmel, the latter would then appear well
Illuminated; still it has the same degree
dark. II has appeared then both light and
dark. An analogous experiment may be
performed III regard 10 heat. Suppose,
then, three basins of water before You.
One contains ice cold water. another luke
warm water. AMI the third water as hot
rs the hand can endure. Now if one hand
is put in tn cold and one in the hot water
and allowed to remain there some time,
and then together plunged into the basin
of luke warm water, the water will feel
hot to the land that was in The cold water,
and cold to the hand that was in the hot
water. The same water appears both hot
and cold, These terms, hot and cold, do
not refer to any fixed temperature, but to
the sensations they produce.
TO II person, it is obvious, room NAV
be hot and to another cold. Again, to the
same person Il room having Il fixed tenn
perature. may ut one time be hot, ut an
other time cold.
We say i room is hot because it has
heat in it; is it ut another time cold be-
cause it has cold in it Do we say Il room
is dark because it has dark in it, or be-
cause it lacks light 50 we say of any
thing tn 1t IS deficient in heat that it is
cold.
1t is important, then, if we would have
the 10 MS w " !pC comfortable in win
t L. that they Sail be constructed not so
mucI. to k: the cold out rs to keep the
heat in. or So hat the air which enters
them shal be of i proper temperature be-
fore admission. An illustration of what
may be done in combining heat in II room
is seen in the Norwegian stove. This
stove is a WOO len box with Il thick lining
of felt. The cover is made in II CORES
ponding manner Food that is desired to
cook, is pat in Il suitablesdish, and put in
the stove or box. where it is surrounded
with its buIly conduc. ing en- elopc. The
cooking will 90 on without further heat.
After the lapse of several hours it will be
quite finished. The cooling down is very
siOw,o owing 20 the imperfect conducting
power OF the lining. At the end of three
hours the temperature is usually found not
to have sunk more than 10 to Is degrees.
The L,pltnleis sometimes construct
their houses by making an excavation in
the earth. Ine only communication with
the outer world is the door, which is usu-
ally about TWO feet wide and three high.
AS these rooms are about six feet in height
and without Il chimney for the escape of
heat or smoke no difficulty is found in
keeping the temperature up to go" Fahren-
lleit, while tie outdoor air is as many de-
grees below zero. 1t is presumed, how
ever, that their rooms are imperfectly VEN
That the temperature Of e room may be
kept sufficiently high in the coolest wealth
er, with very little expenditure of fuel, is
1t least indicated by these facts.