Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1940-11-16
Latest Glass Blocks
Diffuse Glare on
Homes Sunny Side
Fiber Also Cuts Heat
Trunsfer-Humidity
Control Adds Comfort
By DOROTHY DUCAS and
ELIZABETH GORDON.

By DOROTHY DUCAS and
ELIZABETH GORDON.
The use of glass in the home, one
of the distinguishing characteristics
of American building, as empha-
sized at an American Institute Of
Decorators luncheon recently by
Elsie de Wolfe, dean of women dec
orators, upon her return here after
many years abroad, accounts for the
superior lightness and brightness Of
our abodes these days. Glass panels,
walls of glass blocks, large windows,
all have played and are playing
their part in bringing sunshine in
side the house for both health and
decoration.
But problems have arisen as q
result of this blessing. one of them
being what to do about the binding
glow of direct sunlight pouring
through glass-block walls on a par
ticularly sunny day. No matter how
much you like light, you can't take
glare for long, especially on un-
shaded east, south or west exposures.
So the resourcetul makers of glass
blocks have devised special kind
of block which contains all the old
advantages Of light without sight,
plus efficient diffusion of direct SUM-
light.
The new lght-diffusing glass
block has a screen of thin pressed
glass fibers inserted and perma-
nently sealed between its two halves.
The screen permits light to be
transmitted through the block, but
scatters the sun rays so completely
that intense glare is eliminated. 1t
really directs the rays over broad
area of the room. It does not blot
out the pattern of the glass block
itself. It merely softens it, so just
as good looking panels are possible
with it as with the older type Of
glass block
The block is available in 8-inch
(7A by 7A) size only and is made
exactly as the conventional blocks
are. Its heat transfer is somewhat
less than the conventional block be-
cause the screen reduces direct radi-
alton, which is point to remember
If you use it for a panel in a room
which is to be air cooled. This
same factor, of less heat transfer,
also reduces somewhat the occa-
sional problem in regard to conden-
sation on the warm-room side of
the glass panel.
If you have place where you
would like to install a glass block
wall, but definitely want diminished
brightness on sunny days, find out
about the diffusing glass blocks.
Humidity Control Unit.
Humidification is an increasingly
popular part Of winter heating of
homes. The introduction of moisture
to increase comfort and to protect
furniture and books from splitting
and drying in desert-dry air is one
Of the main functions of winter air
conditioning. It is well known that
dry air at relatively high temper
ature may feel cooler than air at
a lower temperature which has a
high moisture content.
But in q home moisture must be
controlled. It must be adjusted in
amount to the temperature of a
room-neither too much nor too
little-to do the Job without creating
new problems.
Any humidifcation system, no
matter whether it acts through
valves, pumps or sprays, should have
q humidity control to help it keep its
Aa Ia ~
Is small item in the total expense
Of installing winter air conditioning,
and its inclusion takes the guess
work out Of adjusting the amount
Of moisture to be introduced In
the air.
A new humidity control we have
been hearing about can be used
with any automatic humidifying
system to step up the amount of
water evaporated or to decrease
the amount, as temperatures drop
or rise. It's element is human hair
Eight bands of it, each containing
IL strands-for human hair is the
most susceptible element to air
borne moisture.
the humidity regulator is between
20 and So per cent. It usually is
set in conjunction with the thermo-
stat for the nearest thing to ideal
conditions which engineers have
been able to estimate: 70 degrees
temperature, 40 per cent relative
humidity. Together, the humidity
control and the thermostat act to
approximate these conditions. When
temperature goes up, humidity auto
matically is cut down and vice versa.
This humidity control is wall
mounted instrument, like thermo-
stat, which is located about S feet
above the floor, where it is affected
only by average temperature and
average relative humidity in a room.
Its case is silver bronze, modern in
appearance. If you have q humidi-