Evening star., 1939-12-16
First Aid
For the
AiingHouse
BY ROGER b. WHITMAN.

by RULER b. WHITMAN.
Question: In replacing vacuum
valves in my radiators, I find sew
eral are off the perpendicular when
properly tightened. I understand
that they should be vertical. How
can make them so?
Answer: Unscrew valve for a
few turns. Smear little white lead
on few inches of coarse cotton
thread, lay this in the threading of
the valve and screw the valve into
position. The cotton thread will
jam in the screw thread and hold
the valve in place.
Pool in Winter.
Question: My garden pool is 20
foot long, E feet wide and feet deep
with vertical sides. 1t is now empty,
but is there danger that it might
be injured by the freezing of water
from rain or thaw? If so, how
can protect it?
Answer: With the pool empty,
there will be nothing to balance the
outside pressure due to the freez-
ing and thaWing of the earth around
it. For protection, the pool should
be filled; damage from ice can be
avoided by floating few logs in
. the pool; logs or 10 feet long float
ed end to end, to extend the length
of the pool. Pressure of ice will
be taken up by COMPRISING the
wood.
Flooded Cellar.
Question: We have outside cellar
stairs with a drain at the foot. In
heavy doWnpour the drain is in
sufficient and the cellar floods. Is
there any solution except to build
q trap door covering the stair well?
Answer: The drain may be clogged
with earth; have it cleared out,
which a plumber should be able
to do with a snake" Otherwise,
putting a hatch cover over the
stairs is the surest remedy.
Metallic Waterproofing.
A correspondent noted a reference
to a metallic method of damp
proofing a cellar in one of the New
York morning papers. He asks about
1t.
Answer: Metallic method" prob
ably refers to damp-proofng treat
ment through the use of iron ce-
ment, of which variety is intended
for this particular purpose. You
can find out about it at any large
hardware store; the company max
ing the cement issues book of in
structions on the subject.
Window Sill Shelf.
Question: I am having long
shelf placed with the level of a
window sill. I want to give the
shelf a hard polished finish and
protect it from water. Is it pos
sible to keep a finish light so that
it will not get dark with age? Sew
eral pieces of furniture which are
finished with many coats of shell
lac have turned quite dark in few
years.
Answer: Two coats of quick
drying varnish, the kind made OF
synthetic resins. will give YOU
durable and water resistant finish.
When the first coat is hard and dry
dull the gloss bv rubbing lightly
with very fine sandpaper, wipe the
surface with a cloth dampened in
turpentine, and then apply the Sec
ond coat Many coats of shellac
or varnisl will tend to darken the
finish.
Dance Floor.
Question: I want to clean and
refnish a floor that has been used
as a dance floor and gymnasium.
1t has been through some very hard
usage, but still remains fairly
smooth Would T get the desired
results by giving it trisodium
phosphate bath, or would scrap
ing be better? I should like to
finish the floor so that it will appear
shiny and clean. 1t will be used
for children's CAMERON and dances
twice week.
Answer: l would not wash the
floor with water; scraping with a
sanding machine will be best. You
can rent these machines The
names of firms renting the machines
can be found in your classified
telephone book; or probably your
hardware dealer can help you out
For a finish that will give lasting
results, use a liquid floor sealer
These sealers have been found dur
lANS lANelAsNel