Evening star., 1940-07-20
First Aid
For the
AningHouse
BY ROGER B. WHITMAN.


q. would like to hang 8x10 pho
tos without framing. How can pro-
tect them from curling and soiling?
What kind of glue in small dabs
would hold these to the wall?
A. For glue use rubber cement.
which is on general sale. With this
stick the photos on pieces of card
board of the same size, and wrap
them in sheets of cellophane. The
combination will be so light in
weight that dabs of cement will hold
them to the wall.
Foil and Rock Wool.
q. You have stated in the past
that any form of insulation must be
equal in thickness to give the same
amount of insulation. I have been
thinking about insulation and no.
ticed blanket type of rock wool
completely inclosed in aluminium
foil with fanges for fastening. It is
one inch In thickness. The manu-
facturer claims it is fully equal to
four inches of rock wool. This seems
to be contrary to what you have
stated, and I would like to have
your opinion.
A. One inch of most fibrous types
OF insulation are about equal in in
sulating efficiency, Therefore, the
rock wool inside the foil casing, If
tested separately, will be equal to
the average fiber type of insulation.
OF course. with the addition of alu-
mlnum foil around the one inch of
rock wool, the insulating efficiency
is stepped up considerably, and it
then compares favorably with the
greater thickness of rock wool.
Subduing Piano Noises.
Q. We live in an apartment and
have a piano. We would like to
know If there is any effective way
to baffle the sound-board of the
piano, so that it would muffle the
sound and not disturb the neighbors.
A. A piece of carpeting placed
under the piano may cut down the
transmission of the low notes
through the floor into adjoining
apartments. Pieces of heavy sponge
rubber or cork placed under the
legs of the piano will cut down vi
brations. A further suggestion is
to cover the top and back of the
piano with heavy pile of fabric.
A heavy blanket can be used as an
experiment. Acoustical or sound
absorbing material might be used
Inside the piano. but it would be
rather expensive and should be in
stalled by an acoustical expert.
Streamlining Old Bathtub.
Q. Our old-style bathtub has
four legs. with one end round: it
stands on tile floor. I plan to
take of the legs and set the tub on
q bed OF cement Can I make the
end OF the tub square?
"A. mat change is often made |
With the legs off, the tub is set on
two timbers and wedged tightly
into the corner of the room. A frame
is then built around it to be covered
with metal lath, and then tiled. |
The end of the frame is square
across the rounded end of the tub
ana the top corners are filled with I.
metal lath, cement and tile. If the
cS eAASo, yOu NC Careful |
10 make a tight joint between the
rounded edges of the tub and the
tiled wall. A metal filling for this
JOINT can be had; you can get in
formation at the Architects SAMPLES
EXHIBIT, lO1 Park avenue, New York. |
"a non-commercial association.)
Hot Rooms on Top Floor.
@. Our apartment is on the TOP
floor. Skylights in two rooms, and |
three south windows permit the sun
to overhead the rooms to an uncom-
fortable degree. How can this be
remedied?
A. For the windows, use outside
Venetian blinds, which will keep
the rooms much cooler than would
awnings. If your skylights are pro-
Vlded with ventilators, as they
should be, keep these open on hot