The Golden State: Where & How to Live, Secure, Visit, Enjoy and Thrive in California
How To Design And Install Plumbing
Plumbing during that period was not considered a scientific industry. The sanitary facilities in a building were few, so no serious results developed from the objectionable practices of those days. The consumer as well as the mechanic regarded a plumbing system as a means of waste disposal and did not feel that health standards could be affected by improper installations. Up to twenty-five years ago, the average mechanic did not know, or at least could not give an intelligent reason why, fixture traps had to be ventilated, even though he had been ventilating traps for many years; nor did he associate scientific principles with any phase of his work. Plumbing during that period followed traditional patterns. Installations were made in the same manner year after year. There were exceptions however. Leaders in the industry were working' constantly to improve practice, to show the layman the relation of health to sanitary conditions of living, and to educate mechanics of the trade in the physical principles associated with their work. The erection of large buildings and increased congestion in growing cities also played a very important part in bringing plumbing practice to a scientific level. Over a period of many years orthodox practices have changed radically and today plumbing is regarded as work of professional caliber.
In order to ventilate a drainage system properly, the mechanic must possess a thorough knowledge of the principles governing the atmosphere. He must know of what elements atmosphere is com-posed and the effects gases it contains have on piping materials. He must be able to correlate the principles of the siphon, pressure, and vacuum with the vent pipe installation, so that when the system is put into operation it will function indefinitely.
Recent experiments have proved that proper ventilation of the plumbing system is of the foremost importance. A waste pipe may be of smaller diameter, and more fixtures can be served on a given size of pipe, provided that a proper condition of atmosphere is maintained within the plumbing system during its operation. These factors have tended to increase the number of vents as well as the diameter of pipe required to serve for ventilating purposes, and they have decreased waste pipe size by permitting a greater number of fixtures to be installed on the waste.
There is still much experimental research needed to strike a scientific medium, but many states have adopted what findings and data have been given to them and are using them to good advantage. Plumbing systems, as a whole, will undoubtedly pass through an important period in the next few years, and it is rather certain that more ventilation will be the demand.
The Atmosphere. Because of the importance of the atmosphere and its properties in ventilation and ventilation problems, it may be well to devote a few paragraphs to the subject. Frequent reference to atmosphere will be made in this chapter and unless the reader has a knowledge of it, the value of the chapter may be obscure.
