IMPROVE- MENTS IN ARRANGEMENTS AND APPARATUS FOR MEASURING AND CONTROLLING THE SUPPLY OF WATER FOR CLOSETS AND GENERAL USES, AND FOR THE DEODORISATION, REMOVAL, AND UTILISATION OF EXCREMENTARY MATTERS
Year: 1866

page_text: PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by Thomas Hoey at the Office of the
Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the 15th December
1866.
I, THOMAS HOEY, of Glasgow, in the County of Lanark, North Britain,
Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention for "IMPROVE-
MENTS IN ARRANGEMENTS AND APPARATUS FOR MEASURING AND CONTROLLING THE
SUPPLY OF WATER FOR CLOSETS AND GENERAL USES, AND FOR THE DEODORISATION,
REMOVAL, AND UTILISATION OF EXCREMENTARY MATTERS," to be as follows, that
is to say :-
This Invention has for its objects the measuring and controlling of the
supply of water for closets and general uses, and the deodorisation, removal,
and utilisation of excrementary matters.
In carrying out the Invention a vessel is provided for containing in
readiness and measuring the quantity of water considered requisite for flushing
and then sealing the closet basin, this vessel being fitted as usual with a pipe
leading down to the basin and with a valve actuated by means of the ordinary
closet handle. The measuring vessel is supplied by means of an inlet valve.
or tap proportioned so as when full open to require a definite time, say,
about three minutes for filling the vessel. The inlet valve is connected to the
discharge valve or to the lever or wire actuating it so as to be closed when
that valve is opened. The measuring vessel is adapted to the bottom of the
cistern ordinarily fitted in connection with waterclosets, receiving its supply
from such cistern. If the closet handle is not held up too long a quantity of

page_text: water sufficient for sealing will be caught in the basin, but the supply for
sealing may be rendered more certain by making the usual enlargement at
the top of the descending pipe with two compartments in one of which
the descending pipe opens, effecting its immediate emptying for flushing the
basin after which the water in the other compartment finds its way slowly
through a small opening in the partition to the descending pipe. The
measuring vessel may be made with two compartments in this way, or
according to a modified plan separate measuring vessels may be provided for
flushing and for sealing, their valves being so connected to the closet handle
that the lifting of that handle will discharge the flushing water, whilst the
lowering of it will discharge that for sealing, a single five-way tap may be
arranged to effect the actions indicated. It is desirable that the closet handle
should be drawn up to its full height whenever it is actuated, both to insure
the pan's being fully depressed and to secure the proper action of the water
supply, with this view the handle rod is arranged so that it cannot be depressed
until it has been raised the full height, the appliance for this purpose
consisting of ratchet teeth and a spring catch. On the rod being drawn fully
up the catch is thrown out of gear by the contact of a projection and guiding
surface whereupon the rod can descend freely. In measuring and controlling
the supply of water for general uses the tap, cock, valve, or crane from
which the supply is taken is proportioned so as when full open to discharge
a definite quantity per minute, and as the quantity so discharged will depend
upon the pressure, unless the pressure on the service pipe is uniform, the
supply pipe must be fed by a cistern with a flont tap to insure a constant head
or pressure. The tap or crane is connected with a piece of clockwork driven
by a weight or spring, and is arranged to act on a lever so that such lever
will hold the pendulum at one extremity of its swing when the tap is shut.
When the tap is open the lever moves so as to release the pendulum which
swings as long as the tap is open, being again held on its being closed. The
clock will then denote the aggregate time during which the tap will
have been open from which the quantity of water used can be easily
calculated.
Another part of the present Invention relates to the deodorising of
excrementary matters in order to prevent unpleasant and noxious exhalations
and to the removal of exhalations that may notwithstanding occur in water-
closets. It is also an object of the deodorising process herein-after described
to permit of a small quantity of water being used in the closet, with the view
of reducing the subsequent cost of evaporation involved in the utilisation of
the excrementary matters by converting them into dry or concentrated

page_text: manure.
The deodorisation is to be effected by means of sulphuric acid
added in small quantities to each supply of flushing water used in the closet.
A simple and convenient appliance for supplying the sulphuric acid in this
way is a small vessel made like a bird cage fountain with a plunger connected
to the closet handle in such a way as to dip into the outlet when the handle
is raised. This plunger is made of a size and is made to dip to a depth
corresponding to the quantity of acid considered requisite at each using of the
closet, and a pipe is arranged in connection with the outlet of the fountain
to convey the acid into the pipe by which the flushing water passes to the
basin, sulphate of iron in solution may be used instead of sulphuric acid;
with reference to the removal of exhalations from the closet, it must be
borne in mind that in most houses the draught of the kitchen and other
chimneys when the fires are on, is sufficient to cause for the most part an
indraught at any openings communicating with any of the apartments and
the outside, and that putting windows or common ventilators in waterclosets
is in consequence generally a means simply of enabling the in draught to
carry the exhalations in the closet thence over more or less of the house,
ordinary appliances being thus rendered nugatory by the action of the chimney
draughts; the proper method consists in taking advantage of these draughts
by arranging a flue or duct to lead from as high a part of the closet as possible
directly to the kitchen or other suitable chimney, and this duct may have a.
branch communicating with spaces under or near the closet seat to remove
the exhalations the more immediately therefrom..
In connection with the arrangements herein-before described it is intended
to keep the discharges from waterclosets distinct and separate from the
refuse water used otherwise, and from rain water, and with this view the
closet soil pipes are led to closed tanks below the pavement, in the street, or
in any convenient situations, each tank is to be cleared out by means of an
exhausted vessel forming one of a series of compartments of a travelling tank
mounted on wheels, and by simply putting such exhausted vessel into
communication with the closet tank with suitable piping. The travelling tanks
are for conveying the excrementary matters to a suitable locality where there
is an establishment comprising any known and economical apparatus for
evaporating the liquids, and thereby reducing the matters to the state of a dry
or concentrated manure conveniently transportable for sale to agriculturists.