The Wichita city eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1872-1883, 1882-02-16
COAL TAR FOR POSTS AND WAGON PAINT.

About twenty years ago commenced
using coal tar on fence posts. grape
stakes, etc. / erected grape arbor
with pine studding four by four inches
square, set two feet in the ground. Be-
fore putting them in the ground, ! gave
them 4 coat of coal tar about two and
one-half feet of the lower end. | do
not recoIlect whether the tar was hot
or only warmed in the sun. The arbor
was taken down after standing eighteen
years, and the posts were nearly all
sound some had begun to decay at the
surface of the ground.
Soon after that | had sheet-iron
tank or kettle made, three feet high and
two feet in diameter, TO heat the tar in.
Ii was set on brick or stone. so as to pu;
wood and chips under it, with the care
10 get il far enough from the buildings
10 he safe from fire. Three posts were
set in The ground, and beard nailed on
TO lean the posts against as they were set
in the kettle to prevent turning the ket-
lie over A wooden lattice was put in
in the bottom of the kettle TO prevent
the posts from bruising the sheet iron
with their weight on the bottom.
put in eight or ten posts al time. heat
ing the tar TO boiling, and keeping il
hot and filed with tar 10 the top when
the posts were in. Let them remain
about fifteen minutes, then take out and
pu. others in. | also constructed a
grape trellis with two small stakes five
feet high to fastcn wires TO. Those
stakes were set bracing, and fastened
with wire hinge at the foot TO short
stake driven in the ground; trellis go
constructed is TO let il down in winter.
These short stakes which were 10 go in
The ground were boiled in the tar.
Many Of them were of pine, sappy wood
very liable TO rot, and on pulling them
up ten or twelve years after most of
them were sound. These several ex-
periences have proved TO me that coal
tar thus applied on dry wood is OF great
service to assist the durability of posts
and stakes.
began TO apply coal tar 10 my wagon
wheels five years ago. On warm day
in summer the tar is sufficiently thin,
hut in cool weather / would advise
heating it. Have the wheels clean and
dry, and be careful that every joint and
craek IL filed with tar. An old paint
brush or rag closely wrapped on the
end of stick will do, with a small
brush or swab TO finish up at each end
of the spokes, the hub and the felly. 1t
is hard, durable and impervious 10 wa
ter. This is the object of paint. II is
the best paint ever used. If should
order a new wagon, would order the
wood work-not only the wheels, but
all the wood of the wagon-yes, the
wagon-box-al first painted with coal
tar. A very desirable thing it would
be TO keep the bottom of the wagon
box from swelling and shrinking.
Last year painted my old rattletrap
buggy all over but the cushions with
coal tar. II frightened the spokes and
entirely stopped its rattle by filling its
creyices aud many loose joints. The
wagon tires will only need setting one
half as often SIS they will without the
roal Tar, il when ii is worn of the FELIX'S
lhcy are painted over again with coal
tar saw published statement this
week that coal tar will cause the boards
ON the fence 10 rot; that il gives them
the dry rot. 1t is quite likely that the
board fence referred to had the dry rot )
but don't believe il was caused by the |,
coal tar. Our railroads are using it of i
ATE very generally on bridge timber,
.lc.-Sael Foster IN NeW York Tribune !