The Washington herald., 1920-06-13
PRACTICAL PARAGRAPHS
Emergency Fire Extinxuisher.

Emergency Fire Extinguisher.
The usually recommended sub
stance for putting out gasoIene
fires is sand. which certainly has
many advantages. Equally effica-
cious for the purpose is sawdusr.
particularly IL it has been soaked
in carbonate of soda. The saw
dust floating on the liquid prevents
air from reaching the fire. and also
q certain amount of carbon dioxide
is generated. While sawdust is
nominally combustible, in reality II
burns slowly at best and actually
discourages the rapid spread or
flame.
Testing Gasolene.
The motorist who wants to test
his gasolene for purity may find the
following suggestion useful: Put
some gasolene in a bottle and add a
little concentrated sulphuric acid.
Shake the bottle we'll at intervals
for three or four hours. The acid
will form a distinct layer or stra-
tum, drawing into itself all the i'm
purities in the fuel, SO that the de-
gree of discoloration found in the
acid will be a measure of the pur-
ity of the gasoleue. A useful test
to determine whether gasolene has
corrosive properties is to drop in the
fluid a bit of copper. II the copper
turns blue or green the assumption
is that the gasolene contains corro-
sive elements.
Radiator Cleaning.
One of the simplest and most ef-
ficient methods of cleansing the ra-
diator of the scale which forms in
Il Is to fill the water system with a
strong solution of washing soda
and hot water, running the engine
for about fifteen minutes. The soda
solution is then drained out of the
system and the scale will come with
IT. Do not race the engine while
carrying out this process.
Sticking Valve Caps.
To remove valve caps OF the hol-
low shape run the engine until IL
is warm and then pour cold water
into each valve cap. In most cases
the cap will contract enough to
make IL comparatively easy for the
moment to remove ii from the cyl-
inder casting.
Caring for Tools.
It is an admirable idea to wrap
good tools, such as drills. wrenches,
ETC., in oiled cloths before slowing
them away in the tool compart-
ment. The oiled cloth prevents the
which is quite likely to happen In
the course of a strenuous seasons
running.
Charcoal for Grinding.
1t is not very generally known
that powdered charcoal mixed with
kerosene oil makes a very satisfac-
tory valve grinding compound In
the absence OF the regular product.
The mixture Is applied In the regu.
lar way and the grinding carried
out, just as with ordinary grinding
compounds. The charcoal produces
valves are In unusually bad condi-
the regular compounds.
spring Cups.
Many cor owners habitually neg.
lect the grease cups that are ordi-
narily fitted to the spring shaciles
flor the fabrication Of the shackle
bolts. Unless these cups are regu-
Iarly turned down the grease In the
passages becomes caked and hard.
ened. preventing the passage of
fresh grease to the surfaces need
ing 1t. If at any time difficulty Is
noticed in turning down these cups
they should be removed and the OBJ
structing matter should be careful
ly cleaned out. and then they should
be filled with fresh grease.
Traction Aids.
Mud and sand are the two road
conditions most dreaded by motor
lists. 1t may be useful to remein-
ber that wheels stuck In either of
these distractions to free traction
may be aided by creating little
: OF the, opposite condition. "A little
dry sand will give traction to
wheels stuck in the mud. and a
bucket or two of water will give
hold to wheels buried in deep sand.
Remembere this the next time; 1t