The Sunday herald and weekly national intelligencer., 1891-05-31
TO ExTINGUIsH FIRES.
The Ingenious Automatic System Placed
in the jackson Mills,

The Ingenious Automatic System Placed
in the jackson Mills.
E. f. jackson & Co., dealers in lumber and
building materials, have furnished their Off
ces, mills, and lumber yards with an auto
matte fire extinguisher, which is attracting
considerable attention from business men in
this city who have large establishments. The
device is that known as the "Grinnell,' OF
Providence, r. l., and from an inspection of
It by a HERALD reporter last week 1t appeared
to be most effective in its character. Though
simple in details 1t is an extensive apparatus,
which it has taken some time to put in. Any
one entering the premises of the firm cannot
but notice the iron pipes an inch or inch and
half in diameter, which run through every
part of them. In the office, near the ceiling,
through the mills, and even through the
large sheds in the yard, in fact, everywhere
that pipes can be run, they have been placed.
Along these at intervals Of seven feet there is
a small valve or cap. These are the basis of
the invention. These valves connected with
the pipes are closed by spring which is kept
in position by being soldered. The compost
ton of the solder is such that it fuses at 1856
degrees Fahrenheit. The smallest kind of
flame produces that degree of heat and the
BOlutT utlbS lDumtOldbcly. 1uAc lOlSCS ouC
spring, which flies out leaving the valve open.
The water pours forth with pressure of
ninety pounds to the square inch, and, striking
a small plate, sprinkles in every direction
and extinguishes the flames before much
damage can be done. In the system which has
been fitted in Jacksons there are 700 of these
valves. The water with which the pipes are
supplied is contained in a tank erected ten
feet above the roof of the main building, and
will hold 10000 gallons. The pipes when not
in action are filled with dry air kept
at high pressure. This prevents any
disagreeable features on account of leak
age, and at the same time counteracts the
effect of the low temperature in
winter which would freeze the water and make
the system imperative. The pressure of the
air in the pipes is such that it would take but
eight seconds from the time valve in the
pipes is opened before the full force of the
water would reach the furthest point from the
tank. In the yard there has been placed an
automatic pump, which supplies water to the
tank or reservoir. When this is once filled an
automatic regulator is placed at a pressure
equivalent to that in the pipes. If this press
ure is removed by the opening of any valve
the pump begins action at once and continues
to work, keeping the tank full or by means of
lever pumping directly into the pipes or
both. This pump has the capacity of supply
ing from three to five thousand gallons of
water minute. Connected with the air
pumps there is also an automatic gong, which
rings for ten minutes In case of fire, or
should break of any character occur in the
system, it rings at once thus notifying the oc-
cupant of the premises The entire apparatus
was put in under the supervision of Foreman
c. Fl. Shea, who kindly explained the system
most thoroughly. A member of the firm of
E. E. Jackson & Co. said to the reporter that
they were satisfied of the effectiveness of the
extinguisher or they would not have used it.
a Baltimore flour firm, whose name he could
not recall, had had a practical illustration of
its efficiency and were most enthusiastic in
praise of it. ''Not only" he said, 'does it re-
duce the chances of large fire to minimum,
but it decreases our insurance to such an ex-
tent that we can probably pay for the entire
cost in about three years. The sum to put the
entire system in 1 cannot tell exactly, but ii
will be in the neighborhood of $4,000. We
carry in our buildings from $4,000 to 10000
worth of materials" Chief Paris and AS.
sistant Chief Lowe are very much interestedin
this new system