Evening star., 1915-02-27
APARTMENT SANITATION
IS IMPORTANT FACTOR
Rooms Should Be Well Ventilated,
Declares Magazine
Writer.

There is one feature Of the apartment
house that is deserving of at least
certain amount of careful thought on
the part Of those who either build or
rent This Is in reference to SANTA
tion. Speaking broadly. sanitation as
applied to apartment structures entails
several considerations that should de-
mand deep thought. says Warfield Webb
in the National Real Estate Journal.
The housing of many families under
single roof entails at least several con-
siderations that will likely cause un-
pleasant surroundings unless the great
est care in construction and mainte-
nance is adhered to.
This Is an age Of fresh air and sani.
tation. 1t is an age when the value OF
air, both night and day. has become OF
the utmost Importance to every tndi-
vidual, and there must be an ample
supply permitted to circulate through
every room of the living abode at all
times. We need light and air, and we
need sunshine and it's accompanying in
fluence as much as we need food to
sustain our bodies. Not alone do we
need these elements during the day. but
at night as well, and in order to OBJ
tain them, pure and untrammeled, our
living abodes must be constructed to
make this possible.
Sanitation Often Disregarded.
Those of us who are at all familiar
with the apartment building under
stand readily enough that this impor-
tant factor is sometimes disregarded.
and the consequences are far from be-
ing favorable to the tenants. We must
think of the welfare of the renters as
well as of the dollars that are received
from them and the lives that are un-
der our care to a degree. II the living
rooms are not so arranged as to per-
nit ample sunshine and air, we are, in
sible for the conditions that bring
about illness and suffering.
AS we progress along more intelli-
gent lines with reference to the real
meaning Of an apartment house. we
come to see that it Is OF as much inn
portance to have the rooms light and
airy as to have them well heated. There
has been progress made In this dtrec-
ton within a few years that proves the
assertion. We are progressing along
Intelligent lines and along lines Of san
itation which means good health.
There is still room for improvement,
as one can note in visits to any large
city, where the apartment house Is pop
ular.
Slight Least Used Room.
If any room in living abode is to
be deprived of sunshine and air.. let it
be the best room. The least used room
and the one that Is less frequently oc-
cupied as sleeping apartment How
ever, with our advanced ideas of hy-
giene and our newer and better way of
constructing the apartment building
there is room for a more general dis
tribution of sanitary laws and sani-
tary ideas in the matter of arrange
ment. One notes, sometimes at least.
the location of bathroom as being far
from desirable. We are putting it
lightly here. Undesirable in reality
means that it is insanitary and some
times positively the cause of Illness.
Cases can be cited where the bath
room opens into the bedroom. What il
the bathroom has an outside window,
the fact of its location does not elimi-
nate the insanitary surroundings.
At other times we find it so close to
the dining room or the kitchen as to
make it far from being an adjunct to
increase our good health.