The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1941-03-14
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by Roses Whitman
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20 Roger 3. whitman-wNU service.a
Wet Chimney.

Wet Chimney.
QUESTION: How can keep rain
- from coming down the chimney
Of my bungalow?
Answer: One method is to put
slab Of stone over the top Of the
chimney, supported on columns, so
that the draft will not be interfered
with. It may be that the water does
not come down the fiue, but gets
into the brickwork through defective
mortar joints, or through broken
chimney cap. These possibilities
should be looked into.
Darkened Floor.
Question: After scraping and wip-
ing, floor was given coat Of white
shellac thinned with denatured al
cohol. The floor has darkened and
is so rough that it catches dust from
the mop. Shellac was purchased in
a gallon-can two years ago, but has
been kept covered in the cellar. Is
this shellac responsible?
Answer: Yes; for shellac deteri-
crates with age. II should be used
within few months. The quality
makers of shellac date their cans.
All Of the old shellac should be taken
off, which can be done by wiping
with denatured alcohol. You will
probably find that this will leave
smooth surface. Get top quality
and pure shellac, and thin it with an
equal quantity Of good denatured al
cohol, put on in two or three thin
coats. Instead of shellac, you could
use two coats Of top quality floor
varnish.
Washing Painted Walls,
Question: What is your formula
for washing painted interior house
walls?
Answer. Use tepid water in which
dissolve trisodiurn phosphate in the
proportion of one teaspoonful to the
gallon. When washing painted walls,
start at the floor level and work up
wards. If you start at the top and
work down, you will make dirty
streaks that will be almost impos-
sible to clean off. Rinse thoroughly.
Trisodium phosphate can be had un-
der a trade name at grocery store;
ask for white cleaning powder that
makes no lather. Another excellent
type of paint cleaner is made Of
. cereal preparation, which has no
strong chemicals and does not hurt
the hands. It is on sale at most
paint stores, and is much used by
professional painters.
Cesspool In an Old Well.
Question: Can you give me any
information about using an old well
as cesspool? Are wells built with
holes in the sides to permit the water
to seep in? Do you think the water
from the cesspool could drain away
through the sides or only from the
bottom? The well is 80 feet deep
and three or four feet wide.
Answer: With water in the bot
tom Of the well, you will naturally
get no drainage, and the idea would
be impractical. There is also pos
sibility of communicating the water
supply Of another well which may
be close by. would advise building
a cesspool and locating it as far
from the sources of water supply as
possible. Have you considered a
septic tank instead of a cesspool?
Refinishing q Brick House.
Question: We wish to clean our
brick cottage, which is go years old.
How should we do it? WHAT colors
do you suggest for the trim and the
shutters?
Answer: You can clean the brick
work with any coarse securing
powder and plenty of water with a
stiff scrubbing brush. II this does
not restore the color sufficiently, you
can use cement paint that is in
tended for masonry, and that you
can get in brick or other color, at
a paint store. White painted bricks
are very popular, and you might
consider this. White trim against
red bricks is effective, and soft
green jade for instance, should be
. good contrast for the shutters.
Cleaning a Statuette.
Question: I have statuette Of
the kind that was made in large
numbers 30 or more years ago, but
that now can be found only in
antique shops. II would look better
Il it were cleaned. What method
and materials should use?
Answer: The statuette is undoubt-
edly Of kind known as a Rogers
Group, or something similar. It is
made Of plaster of paris and finished
with oil paint. You can clean it
with cloth damp with soapy water;
follow by wiping with clear water
and then allow to dry thoroughly.
For final finish you can repaint it
with ordinary oil paint.
Oil Finish.
Question: In a rubbed oil finish,
is raw or boiled linseed oil used?
Is the first coat applied hot or cold?
Answer: Raw linseed oil is usu-
ally applied cold. One excellent
combination is parts oil and part
turpentine, which has greater pene-
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