■V-i,
arrested by the strata of stones and sand beneath the pots as to commnnicate a heat
?no.cnial with the health of the plants without the least excess of moisture.
2129 F o r melon p its, a hollow chamber is formed over the bed of stones thift oovei
the steam-pipes, as in the plan for pines, § 2127. “ Immediately over the bed of stones
arc laid joists, supporting a paved bottom, jointed without mortar, on wluch P“ ®“*
Lother bed ¿f sfones, &e., about 8 in. thick, and on this is placed the mould eon-
tainin» the plants. The ohjoets of these arrangements arc, first, to obtain a perfect
LtomiMof temperature, a ? , secondly, to prevent the possibility of any of the roOTs
recoivin» miury fi-om heat, should they acoidoiitally strike through the mould into the
bed of stones; both of which objects arc perfectly attained. F ig s . 622. and 623. repie-
sent an elevation and
plan of a melon pit erected
622
for W. W. Salmon,
Esq., at Devizes, showing
also the mode of
heating the atmosphere
of the pit, hy flues of
loose stones, heated hy
steam-pipes. The _ ai*-
rangement of these pipes
and the paved bottom
channels for vapour, &c.,
are precisely the same
as above described; but
in lieu of the bed of
broken stones, &c., bricks
are here placed edgewise,
one over the other,
fom- deep, an-anged in
the same manner as for
t e s 7 t o i 7 7 l a i ’dTflat cover jointed close without mortal-, and on this the mould
F ig . 624. shows a mode of warming a cistern or rcsorvoiiof
624
water for the preser-
vation of aquatic plants.
Steam is admitted by a
pipe, three quarters of an
inch in diameter, having
perforations of about
one tenth of an inch at . v i. xl each foot in length; the extremity of the pipe being closed, the steam issues through the
small apertures, filling the whole internal area of the large pipe in which it ^ enclosed,
and imparting an equable temperature to the whole extent of surface. This effect cannot
be obtained by applying steam in the common way, when but a small increase of tem-
nei-ature is required; as the water immediately in contact with the pipe where the steam
is admitted would absorb nearly the whole of its heat, till it aiTived at a temperature far
bevond what could be allowed in a case of this kind. The dimensions of the reservoir
alluded to, are about 3 ft. by 3 ft. 6 in., and 20 ft. long. The external pipe is 4 m
inside in diameter, and the condensed water from it is taken away hy a small inverted
siphon (6) at the farther end. 2131. . , , , Tz aoe aoc. „„3 B e a tin g the atmosphere o f conservatories, hothouses, ^c. F ig s. 625, 626, and
627. represent a mode of heating water in pipes by ,the agency of steam. It is wcli
known, that, by the common hot-water apparatus, the heating of an extensive and unconnected
establishment of houses by one fire is impracticable in most cases; but, in the
S T E A M B O IL E R S A N D TU B E S .
626
mode here represented, the extent of application is in a manner unlimited, whatever he
the numher or situation of tho houses requiring heat It likewise combines all the
advantages of steam as a eondnctor of heat, with that of a bulk of watra ® J®“
The first adoption of this mode was in a iorcmg-hoiisc, belonpng to M i Stmge, near
Bath. The water-pipes were 8 in. in diameter, and about 28 ft. long. The steam-pipe
of 1 in. in diameter, entering at the centre of one end, and proceeding in r o th a an
clined direction to the other, is then returned, still inclining, and passed out at thebofe^
ofthe bore immediately under the place where it entered; it is then formed mto a
siphon (h ) about 3 ft. deep, whence the condensed wator is conveyed away. A smaller
p i? is also connected with the top of the large one to receive the increase o f w o t o r j j
LLnsion when heated, which, as the largo pipe cools, returns into it again. F ig . 627.
shows the an-augement of the front pipes under the
floor. The air being admitted from the air cliam-
bcr underneath, through an opening extending the
whole lengtli of the pipes, and passing through the
upper chambei- on each side of the pipes, is discharged
thi-ough the grating into the house. The
an-angement of tlie back pipes is similar. Shallow
cisterns are connected with the upper part of the
pipes, about 18 ft. from each other, by means of
hollow screws, wliich admit the water to pass to
and fro reciprocally; the capacity of the cistern is
more than sufficient to receive the increased hnlk
of the water, which expands when heated, and re-
tui-ns again into the pipes as the water cools. The
external diameter ofthe front pipes in this instance
is 13 in., and of the back pipes 10^ in-; each set of
pipes is divided in the middle of their length, ex- , i
cept tliat the nearest division of the front pipes returns about half-way round, the end
being in length rather more than 60 ft. These water-pipes have in. steam-pipcs,
extending in them their whole length, and returning again, preserving a regular inclination
tln-oughont. The back pipes have steam-pipes of 1 in. in diameter, passing
through them in a similar way, and the feeding-pipes arc so an-anged that either division
of the pipes may be heated separately, or in conjunction with the rest. Another advantage
attending this mode of applying heat is, that as no rctiu-ning pipes axe necessaiy
as in the common hot-water apparatus, the bidk of water is doubled, with the -same
extent of heating surface, and the retaining power of tlie apparatus is doubled accordingly.
The cisterns are farther serviceable for i-egnlating the humidity ot the house,
which can be done with the greatest accuracy by attending to the covers. _
2132. T he best mode, however, o f heating the atmosphere o f conservatories, hothouses,
Ä-C., h j steam, is when it is discharged into cases o f masonry o r brickw ork. F ig s . 628. and
629. represent a mode of heating, by introducing steam into cases of stone
or hi-ickwoi-k, filled with rubble-stones or pieces of broken brick. 'Uns
modo is equally applicable to the largest or smallest establishments. The
agent being steam, it possesses the same facility of application as steam
applied to hot-water pipes, and consequently the same advantages, an^d
may be adopted in conjunction with hot-water pipes or not, as may be
thought desirable. F ig . 628. represents a cross section of a case of masonry
or brickwork, suitable for a greenhouse of 14 ft. wide, with a glazed roof, and
2 ft. 6 in. of glass in front. F ig . 629. shows a view of the same, with a pai-t ot the front
629
taken awav at cacli end to sliow the inside. The steam-pipes arc P“ ®®] J
above the "bottom, and have pci-forations of about one tenth of an ineh in diametei ,
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