Year: 1870

l


'cda Builder, with the fact that a piece


Of rusty iron, wrapped in cotton or linen


cloth, soon destroys the texture Of the


fabric. A rusty nail, for example, if


laid upon few rage, will soon produce


arge holes in them, or it will, at least,


render every point it touches so rotten


that the cloth will readily fall 10 pieces
at these points, and holes will be pro.


duced by the slightest hard usage.


Iron, during the process Of rusting,
tends to destroy any vegetable fiber
with which it may be in contact. This
explains, TO certain extent, the rapid
destruction of the wood that surrounds
the nails used in outdoor work, where
by the nail is soon left in hole much
larger than itself, and all power Of ad-
hesion is lost. Part of this effect il, no
doubt, due to the action of air and
water, which creep along the surface of
the nail by capillary attraction, and tend
to produce rottenness in the wood as
well as OxidatiOnin the nail. But when
we compare an old nail hole with sim
liar hole that has been exposed during
an equal time, but filled with a wood
en- pin instead of an iron nail, we find
the wood surrounding the wooden pin
has suffered least, and we may, there
fore, fairly attribute destructive action
to the rusting of the iron. 1t might,
at first sight, be supposed that, as the
oxide of iron is more bulky than the
pure iron, the hole would be filled more
tightly and the nail held more firmly
to its place. But, although this effect is
produced in the first instance, yet the
destruction of the woody fiber and the
pulverization of, the oxide soon over
balance it, aud the nail becomes loose.
Of course, the iron Itselfis also destroy
ed, IFS strength being diminished, and
we have, therefore, double incentive
for preventing or diminishing the ac-
ton we have described.


The only way TO prevent this action
is to cover the nail with some substance
that will prevent oxidation, This might
be done by timing, as is common with
carpct-tacks. Coating them with oil or
tallow would be efficient if the act of
driving did not remove protecting mat
ter entirely from large portion of the
surface. But, even then, it will be
found that the oil or fat is stripped off
the point, and gathered about the head
in such a way as to prevent the entrance
OF air aud moisture into the hole. The
most efficient way to coat nails with
grease is to heat them to point suffi-
cent to cause the grease to smoke, and
then pour the grease over them, stir
ring them about in pot or other yes
sci. When the nails are hot, the melt
ed grease will attach itself to them more
firmly than it would have done if they
were cold-indeed, so firmly that it
requires actual abrasion OF the metal to
separate it. rr


In erecting fences, laying plank or
board sidewalks, and the like, it be-
comes an important matter to secure
the nails against the influence we have
mentioned, and yet the work must be
done rapidly and cheaply. Nails may
be readily prepared as described. or they
may be simply dipped in oil or paint
at the moment when they are driven in.
In cases where it is not advisable to
paint the whole fence, it is a good plan
to touch the head OF every nail with a
brush dipped in oil or paint of the same
color as of old wood.-Scieatfc Ameri-
can.