Los Angeles herald., 1892-03-29
Asphalt as q Lining for Reservoirs.


There is in progress at San Gabriel,
| what may be considered a revival Of
one of the methods used by the ancients
in Peru and Egypt, whose cleverness
| in the construction of reservoirs
is demonstrated by their existence to
this day, over period of several thou
sand years. But very few instances are
known of late years where the use of as
phaltum for lining reservoirs has been
undertaken, and its renewal in Cali
fornia and Colorado is owing to the bad
results and great expense of lining with
hydraulic cements, and engineers have
been hunting for material that will do
away with the defects found to be in
separable where hydraulic cement
is used. The reservoir above mentioned
is simply an excavation, with the dirt
from the hole thus made thrown up
on the sides to form an embankment,
with slope of two to one. These
banks have been allowed to settle, and
after being faced up and thoroughly
rolled and tramped, are ready to receive
the asphalt concrete, preparation of
heated gravel and asphalt put on the
reservoir on the inside in similar
manner to the method used in street.
paving. Over this concrete prepara-
tion of asphalt mastic, made in such
manner as to prevent its running in the
heat of the sun, is spread,
making an impervious coating
to the already impervious concrete.
The method used is, we believe, original
with the Asphalt Paving company of
this city, who are doing this work with
their steam machinery, in a thorough,
practical and handsome manner. The
machinery consists of sand drier,
long cylinder which revolves over fire,
heating the gravel and sand to the
proper point to be put into the mixer,
receptacle within which is a
shaft with arms attached and
thoroughly mixes the gravel and hot
asphaltum that is poured into it. The
gravel and asphaltum are mixed until
every particle of sand and gravel is
coated with asphaltum, in such man
ner that when spread on the surface of
the reservoir and rammed with twenty
pound rammer every particle becomes
thoroughly glued together, forming
compact and flexible mass, go fex-
ible in fact that should any
ordinary shrinkage of the banks
occur the asphalt lining will follow with
out cracking. and remain as perfect and
impervious TO water as before. The
great advantages of asphalt for use in
reservoirs are pliability and durability,
being practically indestructible. The
fact that should an increase in the size
OF the reservoir or any other cause re-
quire taking it up, it can be reheated
and replaced without loss of material;
and tine further fact that vegetable
growth will not set its roots In alphalt-
um. The Asphalt Paving company use
only pure asphalt, fuxed and tempered
by liquid asphalt, no coal tar or other
adulterous fuxes being used. The re-
suit is that the water contained in res
ervoir lined in this manner remains
sweet and pure, and can be stocked with
trout or other fish and kept in a healthy
condition. The Asphalt Paving company
deserve great credit for their enterprise
in taking hold of our natural asphalts
and demonstrating to the world their
great value. They have had great
difficulties in finding out the
best way to prepare the many
different qualities from many different
mines and made some failures to their
cost, as this company warrants all the
work they do and Immediately replace
any defective work brought about by
trial Of untried asphalts with unknown
qualities. The recent invention by
we'll known Los Angeles man of an as
phalt testing machine that gives to a
certainty the texture of the asphalt
mastic and also the composites, makes
failure a matter of pure carelessness.
How valuable this machine is can be
readily seen by those working in
asphalt and bituminous products. 1t is
invaluable. The Oil Burning & Supply
Co. of this city have for some time been
shipping and working up the trade for
California asphalts in the east and con-
centrating the trade in this valu
able material in our city. Their
great care in shipping only the purest
grades OF paving and varnish
ket through the United States
vast trade for our practically unlimited
paving in any part of the world are as
to their customers in the eastern states.
The famous Trinidad asphalt, when re-
fined, is only SO to 62 per cent pure
the California product goes SIS to 90
pure, and the conservative payer in the
east is finding it out. 1t is an unfortun-
ate fact that the principal difficulties in
the way Of introducing our asphalts is
found in the vicious and malicious at
tacks made by some few of
our own townspeople, whose ignorance
regarding asphalt would be surprising
if they were not equally ignorant in mat
ters of advantage to themselves. But it
seems part of the get-up of some of our
people to be pessimistic. What other
city in the world can show within a
radius of 900 miles greater and more
varied deposits of mineral than this,
and what other city in the world is 80