The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1886-04-23
THE SYSTEM IS DEFECTIVE.
Indiana Board of Health Condemns the
Plumbing in the New State-Housc.
eral System Is Wrong and Not in Accord
ance with Modern Sanitation.

ance with Modern Sanitation.
The session of the State Board of Health. a,
the regular quarterly meeting, held yesterday,
was devoted almost entirely to the consideration
Of the sanitary condition Of the new Stare-house
building. in which the system of plumbing is, as
has been stated in the columns of the Journal,
seriously at fault, although the State house Com
missioners have persistently declared that no de-
fects existed. The attention of the State
Board Of Health was called to the
matter by the Association Of Sanitary
Officers, at their convention in this city on last
February, and, at a meeting held shortly after
wards, the board ordered that q thorough inves-
tigation should be made, under the direction OF
Secretary Metcalf. by an impartial expert on
matters relating to sanitary engineering. This
investigation was.begun about the time some OF
the defects ia the system Of plumbing were
pointed out in the Journal, to which
the State house Commissioners replied
in several letters, declaring that the
as ~rtions were false, although they declined
to submit the matter to an impartial expert for q
decision, when the offer to pay the expenses OF
6uCu du lutcoVtEaLlObS ~ INV NbnA ~
be sustained, was made to them by the Journey
men Plumbers Association.
The expert selected by the secretary Of the
State Board of Health to make the investigation
JIG. Dunn. His report, which was filed with
Secretary Metcalf, on March Is, was presented
to the board yesterday as the basis of its pro-
ceedings in the matter, and Ii given below in
full:
INDIANAPOLIS, March Is, 1886.
,tr- A - - Al. A.. n 81 - aalfb
ssGentlemen-In compliance with your re-
quest, I made an examination of the plumbing
Of the new State-house. Through the kindness
Of Mr.. Pendergast, the superintendent ! was
shown through the building from the cellar to
attic. and / believe. as Mr.. Pendergast said. was
shown all the work that is exposed to view, a
great portion being hid by the iron lath covering
and some being plastered in the walls. l am
convinced since making the examination that
the general system is wrong and not in accord
ance with the modern ideas of experts.
sFirst-There is no fresh air inlet to soil and
waste pipes.
sSecond-The safe waste, which is q two inch
cast iron pipe. is made to do double service-that
of . waste from safes and also to venti!ate the
traps Of water-closets and urinals. / find on one
line of soil pipe at the northwest corner of the
dome, twenty water-closets and twelve ~urinals,
all vented by this two-inch pipe, and the same
pipe is to be used for the safe waste on that line
of pipe.
ulTu-Ou u nIbb AOVE III II SLOo TWILL
west of the south entrance there are four water
closets vented into a brick fue, the soil pipe ex-
tending up only about three feet above the floor
to where it enters the due. This 1ue is not
plastered, but has been washed over with a thin
coat Of hydraulic cement put on with q brush.
s.Fourth-At the extreme north end OF the
building / find that the vent pipe is
connected to the soil pipe, and then the soil pipe
enters the large smoke-stack.
"Fifth-I find that the four-inch waste pipe
f.o,, covaro1 rrfr ala ia M nm and wanted into a
back lue. The same due has one or more fire.
crate openings.
: sSixth-Three water-c!osets are vented into
another brick fue with crate openings.
"Seventh-The waste pipes, down-spouts, and
overflow pipes from the tanks connect in the eel
lar to the ordinary stone w pipe and are there
run to the sewer. These pipes are now connected
and lay exposed on top of the ground.
"Eighth-In the closet-room near the south
west corner / found one joint of the safe-waste
and vent pipe loose, not having been properly
coupled.
bottom Of each stack of soil and waste pipe, and
as there is no fresh-air inlet. the pipes become
air bound. and the free passage OF the water is
checked.
TENTH find that some of the fues which
the soil and waste pipes enter for ventilation do
not run out through the roof but are to be left
open even with the floor on the attic, where o
number Of ventilating fues for the different
rooms are open in the same manner. / find a
number Of joints on the soil and waste pipes
that were not more than about one-hal full of
lead, putty being used to fill M with; -,
*The Commissioners now state, however, that the
pipes will be carried through the roof.
After carefully considering the sanitary ques-
tons involved in the experts specification of de-
fects, the members of the board, in a body, &C.
companied by Commissioner Seward. visited the
Sta.e-house building in the afternoon. and per.
----Yl- A. -1--hs~~ No CA-A~1
stated to the board that the specifications men
toned in items four, Ave and six of the experts
report, had been changed, while that OF item
| eight had been remedied. These changes. how
ever, had been made since the report was filed, q
month ago, and after the published declaration
Of ths Commissioners that no defects existed.
The boards inspection of the plumbing re-
suited in the discovery of a number of defects
not mentioned in the experts report, and these
were set forth in a written statement. addressed
to the State house Commissioners,
ing various changes In the system Of plumbing,
which are deemed essential from a sanitary point
of view. The experts report was approved,
and the defects pointed out by him were
embodied in the boards communication to the
State-house Commissioners. In speaking OF their
own observations the members Of the board
| state that they do not approve Of the c%onstruc-
ton Of the sewer under tho building, because it
is not in accordance with modern sanitation.
They would, they state, condemn a sewer under
any building, either public or private. because it
imperils the health Of the occupants. They
| state further that IL is impossible to properly
flush the Ave-inch soil pipes with four inch pipes.
They found that all the down spouts and waste
| pipes from the urinals and wash-stands 20 into
the cellar and enter the sewer beneath the build
ing. to which there are serious sanitary
objections. Where enamelled ware pipes
enter into earthenware pipes they are joined by
| Portland cement. The expansion of the iron will
| cause the earthenware to crack and allow dan
| gerous gases to escape. There are other defects
| of a grave character, and all of these the State
| house Commissioners are asked to remedy, in
dong which they will have to change probably
| almost the entire system Of plumbing.
After disposing of the State-house plumbing
matter, the board elected DR.. S. S. Boots as its
| representative to attend the national sanitary