The Golden State: Where & How to Live, Secure, Visit, Enjoy and Thrive in California
Care And Repair Of The House
Other Cellar Finishes.
If the walls are damp, they should first be treated by a method such as outlined in section 1 of this chapter (pp. 6 to 10. Cleaning and brushing, as heretofore recommended, is also necessary.
After the walls have thoroughly dried, they may be treated and painted with a cold-water wash or oil paint as described in Chapter All, section 7 (pp. 87 to 89).
If the cellar floor is below grade, it is not advisable to use oil paint, even though the floor appears to be dry. In this case, it can be treated with sodium silicate or aluminum sulphate. These treatments when properly applied give a hard surface, bright and uniform in appearance, and easy to Keep clean.
Better Lighting Facilities.
If the house is equipped for electricity, extension wires will permit the use of portable or additional lamps in any part of the cellar. Frosted bulbs are best for cellar lighting, as they give a more uniformly diffused light. In so far as distribution of light is concerned, two or three 25-watt frosted bulbs are better than one 50 or 100 watt plain bulb.
In case a lamp is placed where the bulb is liable to be broken, it is advisable to protect it with a wire basketlike covering or guard.
Porcelain fittings are recommended for cellar fixtures on account of the danger of shock.
Of far greater importance, if the ceiling is of tight-fitting fire-resistant materials, is the safety it affords by delaying the spreading of a cellar fire to floors above, and by reducing smoke damage.
If the cellar is dry and well built, it can often be made into an attractive place by putting in a ceiling, painting the walls and floor as described in Chapter XII, section 7 (pp. 87 to 89), and partitioning off the coal bin and furnace. It may then be used as a summer dining room, game room, or for other purposes if extra space is needed.
Before putting on the ceiling, all openings, through which fire might find quick passage to the structure above, should be adequately fire stopped. Such openings may be found around service pipes and registers, and between joists or studs, where they join the foundation. It is best to use incombustible materials for fire stopping, such as crushed refuse mortar, plaster, concrete, hollow tile, gypsum block, broken brick, or other similar material, containing sufficient fine stuff to fill voids. The fire stopping can be supported by horizontal wood strips, not less than 2 inches thick, or by metal or wire mesh.
Several materials are used for ceiling purposes. Gypsum or asbestos board, plaster on metal lath or on gypsum plaster board, or metal ceiling, properly furred, may be used, depending on the taste of the individual and the amount that may be expended.
