Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-05-18
Repairing Leaks in the City Post
Office Building.
LOOSELY DRAWN SPECIFICATIONS
Differences Between the Depart
ment and the Contractors.
M ORE REP PAIRS LIK Ell Y

had arisen between the office of the SUI
pervising architect of the treasury and the
Philadelphia Steam Heating Company, con-
tractors for the steam work in the new
post office building in this city. 1t will be
remembered that according to the claims of
the contractors the department had exact
ed conditions which were not called for in
the contract and had specified work of an
undesirable character, the accurate per-
Torrance of which later caused complaint
and demands for corrections at the con-
tractors expense. The department refuted
these claims and referred the matter to
board of inquiry composed of Chief Engi-
neer A. B. Canaga, U. S. N; Capt. John W.
Collins. enginecr-in-chef of the revenue
cutter service. and Assistant Engineer J. c.
Farken. r. C. s.
Report Not Given Out.
After an investigation the board reported
at length to the department, but all efforts
to secure copy of this report for pubica
ton have failed, the officials of the depart
ment declining to make it public on the
ground that it is of no interest to the peo-
pie at large. A general understanding pre-
walls that the report practically exoner2tes
the contractors of the charges brought by
the department and orders changes in the
work far in excess of the small charges
placed upon the contractors, which, if so,
VeritieS in part at least the complaint that
plans and the specifications for the steam
fitting drawn by the supervising architects
Office were inadequate and improper But
no verification of this statement can yet be
obtained from officers of the government or
from the contractors.
The view is taken by those who have
watched the course of procedure on this
construction hiatt this report is, in fact, of
considerable interest to the public, in view
of the charges which have been brought
against the methods involved in the cree
ton of this particular building as a type of
the public construction throughout the
country. The Star has from time to time
contained articles serving to show that the
methods in vogue have been costly in time
and money, and that the business of pre-
pairing plans and specifications for the work
in this department is loosely performed.
This issue is distinctly involved in the
controversy between the steam fitting con-
tractors and the architects office, and it Is
on that account that there Is so general All
interest in the report which has been thus
far withheld from the public's eye.
All Machinery stopped Yesterday.
1t is not altogether necessary, however
to secure access to the text of this report
to obtain evidence of it's character. Con-
ditions In the city post office establishment
are said to furnish indications of the YER
diet rendered by the engineers who inres-
tgated the matter. The machine plant of
the entire structure was yesterday out of
service. Not a wheel was turning, not an
elevator running. not a mail hoist was in
service, not a steam coil was warm, not
pump was operating, not a dynamo was
generating electricity. In consequence all
the business of handling the mails, which
since the occupancy of the building
was begun has been performed largely by
machinery was being done by hand. The
electric lights were maintained by cur
rent secured-at market pr'ce-from the
private company. The building was cold
in places as result of the rain storm. The
clerks were in an unhappy frame of mind
There is a controversy as to the cause
of this stoppage of the machinery. Those
few who have had a peep at the engineers
report and are acquainted with the plans
and the character of the work in the build
ing. assert that the steam had to be shut
off in order to make certain repairs to the
steam Joints. The engineer of the building
declared in response to an inquiry that the
stoppage was due to the establishment of
certain elevator pumps. AT the same time
he admitted that repairs were being made
to the steam joints. while those who have
followed the case from a critical point of
view assert that there not the least
necessity for shutting off the steam to per-
NIT the establishment of the elevator
pumps.
In any event the acknowledgement that re-
pairs are being made to the steam joints is
OF considerable interest in view of the fact
that the building is so new that it is only
partially in use and particularly because
of certain conditions concerning these
steam joints, which are believed to reflect
unpleasanty upon the efficiency Of that
section of the supervising architects office
which has to do with the establishment of
steam plants in the public buildings. When
the specifications for the steam fitting were
submitted to the contractor they called
for the use of a certain copper wire gasket
or packing TO prevent leaks. The contract
ors have protested that this gasket would
not suffice for the purpose, and claimed
that the steam joints as packed would con-
StantlN develop leaks. The least nick i'm 1n+.
wire, they declared. would lead to immed-
late corrOsion by the steam and the joints
would soon be faulty. The department Of
hcials denied this allegation and pointed
to the specifications as law. The contract
ors thereupon pointed in rebuttal to the
perience of the government in the construc-
ton of the appraisers warehouse in New
York, where this same gasket was tried
and later condemned worthless, after
having led to the development of whole
sale leaks in the. steam pipes.
The department insisted upon the use Of
this particular gasket, with the conse-
quence, it is claimed, that the steam pipes
began to develop leaks almost Immediately
after the building was occupied. These
leaks were repaired by the contractors sew
eral times, but they finally refused to make
any further efforts to keep the system
tight with what they claimed was the
worthless material called for by the speci-
hcatlons. The question was submitted to
the board of engineers who investigated
the buildings steam service as to whether
the contractors had complied with their
contract and whether the material was or
was not suitable. 1t Is evident that the
report must have been condemnation of
the gaSkets and a vindication of the con-
tractors claim for the joints were In a
constant state of disrepair and some time
ago the bureau asked for bids for the re-
placement of about $50 of the gaskets with
rubber packing. Incidentally it may be re-
marked that the contractors for the steam
fitting We're not invited to bid on this job.
The contract was recently awarded to a
local firm at a cost of about 500, and the
sad state of affairs at the building yester-
day Is declared by the bureau critics to
have been the consequence of the necessity
to perform this task of replacing such of
the joint packing as cannot be renewed
when steam is on the building, with pre-
cisely the kind of gasket which the con-
tractor has contended must be used and
which the bureau rejected in favor of the
copper wire.
incidentally it is pointed out by those IA
mll1ar with the steam plant at the build
ing that this break in the machinery ser
vice at the post office would not have been
necessary had the bureau been sufficiently