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Show FIRST-AID r -to the i AILING HOUSE by Roger B. Whitman (Released by Western Newspaper Union.) Faulting Doors TT IS not always easy to paint A doors when hanging normally, for the paint is likely to streak along the edges of the panels and in the mouldings. The job is much simplified simpli-fied by taking the door off its hinges and laying it flat on boxes or on something else that will bring it to a convenient height. In taking off a door, it should first be opened, so that the outer corner can be blocked up with pieces of wood or books to relieve the hinges of the weight. In all modern hinges the two parts are held together by pins, which can be driven out to separate the hinge halves. The lower hinge should be the first to be separated. If the upper hinge is separated first, and the door should tilt, the leverage would be so great that the lower hinge would be bent or even broken. In replacing the door, the upper up-per hinge should be the first to be put together. With the door laid flat, paint or other finish goes on smoothly and evenly, with little chance that "tears" or "beads" will form. Attaching Wood to Concrete. It is often necessary to attach shelves or other woodwork to concrete con-crete walls, and the job may be something of a problem. One sure method is to drill holes an inch or two deep in the concrete, making use of a star drill, which can be had at a hardware store. The hole is then plugged with a piece of soft wood, into which a screw can be driven. In place of the wood, the thread of the screw can be wrapped with a thin piece of sheet lead. Hardware stores carry prepared plugs for the purpose, usually sold with a drill. These plugs and drills come in different sizes. For a thin wall, as in the case of concrete block or lath and plaster, bolts with hinged ends, known as toggle bolts, can be had. The hinged end is pushed through the hole, and turns at right angles, which gives a solid support when the nut is screwed down. New Floor Over Old. Question: Can a new hardwood floor be laid over an old floor? "dr should the present floor be removed and the new one laid on the sub-floor? sub-floor? Answer: The new one can be laid on top of the old one, which will save labor. The old floor should first be made smooth; protruding nails either driven in or pulled out, and roughnesses of the floor planed or scraped down. At lumber yards you can get flooring intended to be laid over an old floor; it comes completely complete-ly finished, so that no further finishing fin-ishing will be needed after laying. It is thinner than ordinary flooring, for it serves only as a finish. Sound-Proof Door. Question: What is the simplest way to sound-proof a door between two apartments, or at least to dead- fn thp snnnd? Answer: Sound can be deadened by hanging two or three thick portieres por-tieres over the door. For a better job, set four or five pieces of 1 by 2 across the door opening, from side to side, not touching the door. On these set a sheet of insulating board, cut to fit the opening. The joint between the door and the frame, all around, should first be packed with moth-proof felt, soft rubber strips, or something similar, simi-lar, for much of the sound comes through the joint Cleaning a Cellar. Question: What is the best way to clean an old cellar in which there is a hot air furnace? Answer: Everything in the cellar is probably coated with coal and ash dust, and the first step should be to loosen this by brushing. Then followed fol-lowed with a vacuum cleaner. Concrete Con-crete floor and walls should be scrubbed with a strong solution of washing soda in water, followed by rinsing. ' All wood parts should be finished by painting. For masonry walls use cement paint, while the floor should have a kind of paint that is proof against injury by lime. For the wood parts you can use casein paint. Noisy Road. Question: We live on a road intersection inter-section that is very noisy. Is there any kind of sound-proof glass that could be put in the windows of our living-room? Answer: Glass in two thicknesses, separated by a quarter-inch or more, might do the trick, but would require new window frames. Dou ble windows would give you the same effect. Metal weatherstrips around the window should do quite as well. Another method would b to equip each one of the windows with an electric ventilator of a kino that admits air, but keeps out sound. These can be had from dealers in electrical equipment. |