Maryland independent. [volume] (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1874-current, 1894-09-21
MADE UP MORTAR.
Factories That Mix 1t By Ingen-
ious Machinery.
A Remarkable Step Forward In
Building.

oil mortar box or mortar mixer Will
be curiosity. For several years
builders have talked Of the desirability
of establishing mortar factories, but
the idea was never very fully deyel-
oped uqtil recently. While nearly
every other material used for building
purposes has generally been brought
to the building site ready made, mortar
has always been left to the unskilled
management of the most inferior
workmen, who mixed 1t 'by hand
near the place where it was to be used.
This has always been source ofmuch
annoyance to all persons concerned.
The lime barrels, sand heaps and mix
ing box together consumed a greatly
needed quantity of street space and
added greatly to the sisorderly ap-
pearauce. of things in the neighbor-
hood Of building which was In pro-
cess Of erection. In some of the larger
cities several mortar plants were es-
tablished in which mortar would be
mixed by hand kept in stock until an
order was secured, when it would be
retempered and sold.
This plan, however, gave very little
satisfaction. Within the past year a
process has been evolved whereby NOR
tar can he manufactured by machinery
in almost any quantity at moments
notice and with the certainty that the
proper temper" will be given. This
Is q remarkable step forward i'll build
ing. Ia insure good work it was nec-
essary by the old plan to commence
Stacking the lime about two weeks or
moma before the time when the
mortar was 70 ae used The modern
mortar machine slacks the lime in
forty-fye minutes more perfectly than
was ever accomplished by the hand
noe process IN afortnight.
By the old method the workmen
would frsqpeatly miscalculate the
~emoun SQnd either mix too
4 ute alS Sws-tca r ~ertar. This would
TuesF ssvent and in she second the
supeiTss mortar would be wasted.
Now Contractor can order Just the
amount Of mortar he needs and be
sure that he will have reliable arti-
Gle. For some time past there has
been very successful mortar factor
operating in Philadelphia, in which
mortar has been made with machinery
very successfully A few months since
a mortar company put up the first
mortar machine ever erected in Ohio |
at Cincinnati. In this factory the sand
used is dumped into hopper at the
edge of the canal and falls through
this hopper into the sand conveyor,
which carries it to the roof of the fac
tory through subterraneous trough
and is dumped into an elevator. This
elevator carries it to the roof of the
factory, where it is thrown into a re-
volving screen eight feet long by two
feet in diameter. The sifted sand falls
on belt, which conveys it into the
mixing room on the second floor.
The lime is kept in huge bin in the
rear of the first story building From
this bin two chutes lead down to the
patent revolving cylinders or retorts
III which the Stacking is done.
These retorts each held fifty bushels
of lime and will turn that amount out
thoroughly Stacked every forty-fve
minutes. The liquid lime is pumped ]
up to the mixing tub S by means of
specially patented pumps, and then the
most delicate part Of the process is {
reached the mixing. A great deal of I
judgment Is necessary to decide Just
how much time is needed to given l
quantity Of sand, for the reason that {
very coarse sand holds much more i
lime than very fine sand before it will l
hold well, and the quantity of lime has i
always to be guaged to suit the partic-
ular qnality OF sand on hand. The t
mixer itself is gigantic screw and
several large paddles, which hurl, a
twist and comfort the lime and sand S
until there is no grain that is not as t
thoroughly mixed a, the average dis
cussion on the financial question.
After mixing it is dumped into Il
carts and put into immediate use in T
the walls Of buildings Or on ceilings.
There is no need to wait a second for $
any retempering or auything of that a
sort. Machine made mortar, it has ?
been found,is always more thoroughly s
mixed, is easier to work with, and does S
not ''bl ster t
The Cincinnati factor has capacity T
of $50 tons per day Of ten hours All
arrangements have been completed to
erect similar plant in New York,
which will have a capacity of LOCO, u
900 poundsa day Machine made
mortar :. .bsyef,ro no LONGER the ! 2