Los Angeles herald., 1908-06-21
PUT GREAT CITY
UNDER ONE ROOF
HAMBURGER'S BUILDING IS
FINEST IN WEST
SYSTEM OF HYGiENIcs PRE-
SCENTED HARD PROBLEMS
Heating and Ventilation Systems Em-
brace Wonderfully Efficient but
Complex Features - How
Structure Is Regulated

Los Angeles latest milestone in Its
marvellous progress is soon to be COM
pleted. It will be dedicated In the
near future to one of the greatest
tides of its commercial life, and that 1t
will prove the mightiest mercantile
monument In the west stands unols-
puted.
The new Hamburger department
store is to be city in itself, verit-
able human beehive, with all the COM
plexity of detail characterizing a busy
city, save that 1t will be a metropolis
in miniature, though not so diminutive
as might be imagined, for 1t will epito-
mize many great features never before
attempted outside of the worlds four
leading cities.
1t will enjoy not only the distinction
of being by far the largest depart
ment store in the west, but it will en-
body what are declared the most Won
derful and complete systems of heat
ing and ventilating known to modern
science.
Every particle OF air that enters the
big Hamburger store will be actually
washed in water before 1t reaches the
great fans installed to distribute 1t.
The centrifugal sventilating fans will
draw the air from high altitude,
through specially constructed tower
house on the roof, and distribute 1t,
purified and humidified to the ducts
and plenums. These fans are driven
by powerful electric motors.
The building will contain big banks
of Sturtevant pipe-radiation, built into
batteries of heating coils, so that the
air may be directed and tempered ac-
cording to weather and demand.
Has Many Thermostats
Each portion of the big building is
equipped with a national thermostat
and other devices forming an auto
matte control for the air. Between the
ceilings and floors the space is her.
medically sealed and made into a
plenum, or pressure chamber, so ar
ranged In their connection with the
distributing system that drafts are alb
solutely impossible. If every door and
window is closed the building is kept
full of pure, fresh air at an even tenn
perature.
The building is constructed absolute
ly dustproof. In addition to the ven-
tilation there is a system Of removing
the vitiated air from the building as
regularly and evenly as the fresh air
is admitted.
The building will contain. aside from
the Los Angeles library ana merchan-
ulSe, every ldCuity lOI CoHlIorC WHICH
architects and the best sanitary scien-
lists can conceive.
In brief, the Hamburger department
store building is absolutely unique, not
only, as a completed unit but in many
of its parts.
The system of heating and ventilat-
ing is q modification of the well known
Sturtevant pressure plenum system, as
applied to public buildings and aud
itoriums.
The application of such a system
however, to a d partment store build
ing of this magnitude involved many
difficult problems in engineering.
The usual method of heating build
ings of this type is by the use of steam
coils or radiators placed at various
parts of the building, so as to render
heat sufficient to warm the adjacent ali
by direct radiation.
This method of heating does not
furnish any ventilation and except such
ventilation as may happen by reason
of door and windows being open the
same volume of air in the building will
be reheated and reused by the occu-
pants even after it has been badly
vitiated.
Old Method Faulty
In addition to that the only air sup
piled to the building over the usual
method of heating is such as comes In
to the building through doors and win
dows by natural means due to the pre-
vailing winds and difference of temper
ature. This method has not only grave
disadvantages as to health and COM
fort to the occupants of the buildings
but it also permits of the ingress OF
large quantities of dust and other Inn
ptrities which not only injure the ali
for breathing purposes but Injuries the
fabrics and goods displayed in the store
as well.
1t has been the aim of the Ham
burger company, it is said. to provide
net only store that would be unique
vantages to its patrons as well as
enable them to offer and display theii