Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-01-01
LIFE IN Fl ATS.
The Flat Dweller Suggests Pipe Sys
tenn for Carrying Off Sounds.
FUTURE DAYS.

Inc Fiat DWeller suggests Flpe Sys-
tenn for Carrying Off Sounds.
From the New York Sun.
This. said the fiat dweller, 'Is the
closed season for noise.
"In winter, with all the windows shut,
we no longer hear the multitudinous
sounds that assail US in summer when the
| windows are open, the sounds of pianos,
monographs, key bugles. oboes, flutes,
bassoons and bass horns, to say nothing
of the shouts of merry laughter. No, IN
winter we are. mercifully spared TINS
swelling, dscordant and ever rolling
neighborhood chorus; but not even in Win
ter are we spared the. sounds of our own
house. and 1 wonder If something couldn't
be done about that
mot that these sounds are always I'M
pleasant. 1 have dwelt under a party that
played the blacksmiths chorus on the
piano at all hours of the day and night;
enough to drive one distracted, that; and
then we have lived under people who play
ed delightfully."- only soft and tuneful and
ripping melodies always soothing and
comforting, this; but take all the pianos
in the house, by and large and 1 would
avoid the sounds of them if l could, and
no doubt this would be the common senti-
ment, and I should think that something
might be done to accomplish this end.
Il have thought of insulating the pianos,
ported on some sort of non-sound conduct
ing material, and this would probably be
all right as far as it went; but there
would be the trouble, it wouldn't go far
enough.
1T would shut off the sound from the
people below, but it wouldn't help the peo-
pie overhead a bit; in fact, it might make
their lot worse by DETECTING to them the
entire volume of sounds that before had
been distributed all around. So, obviously,
that wouldn't do or that alone wouldn t.
And what 1 am dwelling on now is a
combination insulation and pipe system
I'VE pipe houses now for light and heat
and ventilation, why couldn't we pipe 'em
for sound? Why not?
Install in every flat apartment house
a system of pipes with inlet openings In
every room-these openings might be of
an ornamental character and placed In
the ceiling around the chandelier or wher-
ever 1t was convenient-all these various
receiving pipes running to one grand u1S-
charge pipe that like ventilation and
steam escape pipes should be carried out
above the roof
With all pianos properly insulated to
keep the sound Of them from working
down, and with such pipe system to
carry off all sounds surging upward, l
should say that the piano problem in nat
houses would be Immediately solved; and
bear In mind also that the sound pipes
would carry off not merely the sounds OF
the pianos but all other sounds, as, for
instance, that Of the merrymaking kept
up until long after midnight in the nat
adjoining or above or below; it would col
lect and carry off all sounds, to be dis
charged above the roof where they would
do no harm to the listening stars.
I'm short it seems to me that good
and adequate sound pipe system would
give to every fiat dweller in his apartment
the privacy and seclusion and freedom
from disturbance OF a private dWelhns:
The way houses thus equipped would rent
ought to commend this suggestion 10
builders"