The New Home

Choosing a House or Flat | Locality | Soil | Aspect | Sanitation | Drainage | Water Supply | Water heating | Decorations | The Kitchen | Fittings | Fixtures | Furniture | Stoves and Cookers | House Warming and Fires | Lobour-Saving Aids | The Hall | The Dining Room | The Bedroom | The Bathroom | Furnishing

Tastes, incomes and other conditions vary so much that to give the bridal couple specific directions regarding the choice and furnishing of their new home would be useless. At the same time it is desirable that some of the general features which they should consider should be pointed out, although freedom of choice is nowadays rarely possible.

CHOOSING A HOUSE OR FLAT

The flat has many attractions for a newly married couple and certainly many advantages. In a flat, expenditure is far more easily regulated than in a house, where little things are constantly cropping up and causing unexpected disbursements.

Often the porter or caretaker does much of the work in emptying refuse and in carrying out various odd jobs. In addition, there is the happy feeling that a flat may be safely locked up and the key left with the caretaker, while the householder rarely feels happy in leaving his house unguarded.

Against these advantages the rooms of flats are apt to be small, and the cupboard space is usually at a premium. If the building does not contain a lift, and the flat is on a top floor, the housework saved by having all rooms on the one level will be neutralized through the labour entailed by the stairs.

A flat-dweller does not enjoy quite the privacy of a householder: he is apt to be worried by his neighbours movements. Modern flats are, however, built on special “sound-proof" principles, so that these annoyances are only experienced in older buildings
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Sanitation and ventilation in flats are matters that require the closest attention; as much refuse as possible should be burned, it being a far more difficult matter to dispose of refuse in a flat than in a house.

Locality

It is important to health and comfort to avoid, if possible, nearness to factories or noisy trades, or they may prove a constant annoyance. The bridal couple should also avoid nearness to railway lines or motor and trolleybus traffic.

If husband, and perhaps wife, have to make daily journeys to business, nearness to station or bus route is an important factor. No less important to the bride will be the facilities for shopping.

Soil

As a rule, a gravel soil is best, as the rain drains through so quickly. Sand, chalk, and clay soils all possess their respec­tive merits, but clay soil should be avoided by anyone subject to rheumatism, as the water rests on it for a long time, and it is consequently damp. It is better, though, to choose a house on a clay soil and standing high, than a house built on gravel and lying low. Trees are an asset providing they are not too near the house, as they help to drain the soil.

Aspect

The aspect of the house should be well considered, remem­bering that sunlight means health and cheerfulness. A house with a south or south-west aspect is lighter, warmer and drier than one facing north or north-east.

Sanitation

Before buying a house, or taking one on a repairing lease, the bridal couple should get a competent surveyor to inspect the building—drains, walls, roof, gutters, etc. The state­ments of agents, or anyone interested in selling or letting the house, should not be relied on. The bridal couple should, if circumstances permit, see if the neighbourhood really suits their health and taste.

It is said that the best time to inspect a house is on a wet and dismal day; if the premises and locality make a favor­able impression then, it is not likely that there is much wrong with them.

Drainage

The question of drainage should be examined carefully, and a certificate obtained from the local authorities or an independent surveyor, stating that all is in order. It is impossible to attach too much importance to this matter: bad drainage is the inevitable precursor of bad health. It is vital to see that all drains are properly trapped, and that there is no direct connection between those carrying away sewage and those emptying the bath, basins and sinks. They must be watertight in order that no bad fumes escape, and well flushed, so that they may be kept in thorough working order.

Water Supply

The water supply is of equal importance. No house, however suitable in other respects, should be taken if the water supply is uncertain or impure. Care must also be taken to see that the cisterns are in good order and of adequate capacity. All cisterns should be well covered and cleaned out at regular intervals.

Water Heating

In most modern houses there is a hot-water supply tank or cylinder, which is connected with a boiler, either at the back of a grate, or in the form of an independent boiler. Expert advice should be sought on the shape and size. Many hot-water arrangements are defective through no fault of the range or boiler, but owing to their being badly planned, or to the fact that the flow and return pipes to the cylinder or tank where the hot water is stored are too small. The advantage of heating water from a boiler placed at the back of the fire is obvious, one fire being considered capable of heating the ovens, the hot plate and the boiler; but as to-day the demand for hot water is greater than it used to be, it has been found in many instances that there is a waste rather than an economy of coal, because the only way rapidly to heat water in this manner is to pull out the boiler damper of the grate. This causes a strong draught up the chimney, the flames are forced past the boiler at a great pace, and waste much of the heat.

Independent boilers provide a much cheaper means of heating the water. Larger boilers are frequently built in sections with a long fire chamber, and in a large house the addition of a thermostat is advisable. A safety valve should always be attached to prevent the possibility of explosion through excessive accumulation of steam. There are a number of small independent boilers heated by gas. These are very popular as auxiliary heaters, but are rather costly if hot water is required at all times of the day. Where the water is chalky, it is essential that the chalk deposit should be removed from the inside of the boiler periodically.

DECORATIONS

Where the bridal couple are purchasing a house, they can of course, choose their own decorations. A landlord usually allows incoming tenants to select wallpapers, within a specified range of prices per piece. In some cases the bridal couple will prefer to have the walls of some, or even all, the rooms distempered, for the plain flat surfaces set off pictures and furniture to great advantage. Choice may be made from a large range of artistic colours. Distemper has the advantage of being considerably cheaper than paper, and it is cleaner and more healthy.

The Kitchen

The following desirable conditions should be borne in mind when considering a room's possibilities as a kitchen:

1. Convenient distribution of parts, with large dimensions.
2. Good light, heat and ventilation.
3. Ease of access without passing through the house.
4. Walls and location so arranged that cookery smells cannot spread                through the house.

In addition to these important points, the equipment of the kitchen demands careful attention. It comprises fittings, fixtures, furniture, and the utensils necessary for household and culinary uses.

Fittings

A plain, plastered ceiling is most suitable, whether the kitchen is used solely for cooking, or, as is the case in many small houses and flats, as a combined kitchen and living-room. The ceiling should be whitewashed frequently, for, apart from the cleanliness, which is always desirable, the whiter the ceiling the greater will be its capacity to reflect light

The walls of a kitchen used only for culinary purposes should be lined with white glazed tiles, or else have a high-tiled dado. Tiled walls are more easily kept clean than distempered walls, which show every mark. When dis­temper is used, a light shade should be selected, not neces­sarily buff, although that colour is generally preferred because walls and woodwork should agree in colour, and buff is liked better than grey or green in a kitchen. Certainly it has good qualities: it is clean-looking, and it shows signs of wear less quickly than other colours.

Floor-coverings are rarely found in kitchens devoted entirely to cooking. Where the kitchen is to some extent also the living-room, good linoleum will be found the most serviceable floor-covering. Plain varieties are preferable to those with a patterned surface, as they do not reveal signs ot wear so readily.

Fixtures

The fixtures are the immovable articles attached to the walls of the kitchen. They vary considerably, but include cupboards, electric light or gas fittings, ventilators and sink.

A well-constructed sink, with two draining boards, is indispensable. It should have a slight slope towards the pipe, to ensure that all dirty water runs away promptly, and should be easy of access for both cleaning and repairing.

Whether the sink is in constant use or not, the pipe should be flushed at least once a day with hot soda and water.

Every kitchen should be provided with some outlet for the hot foul air which rises to the top. Doors and windows should be kept open as long as possible to admit fresh air, but an outlet at a higher level than the window is also desirable.

Furniture

Strength and durability are the chief considerations when furnishing the kitchen.

The table is the most important article. It should be as large as the kitchen will allow. The usual form is oblong, with a drawer at each end. It should be made of good, well-seasoned deal or other white hard wood. The top must be smooth and without cracks, and the legs plain and strong.

A kitchen cabinet is of great assistance in the small kitchen. It takes the place of the old-fashioned dresser, the top shelves being fitted with doors, and used for storing food or crockery, and the deep drawers below being lined with tin, and used as containers for bread and flour. The cabinet table itself, is broad enough to serve as a pastry-table. Every available bit of space is utilized, the backs of the cupboard doors being fitted with various necessary utensils. The bride finds every possible requirement within an arm's length when cooking.

No kitchen can be regarded as completely furnished, without a clock.    An electric clock is best for the purpose.

Stoves and Cookers

Electricity is an excellent cooking agent. No ashes, dust, waste heat or fumes are involved in its use. Anyone can learn in a few minutes how to use the electric cooker. It consists of an oven, grill and boiling plates. Each part is controlled by a separate switch that turns the current on or off, and gives "high", "medium" or "low" heat. The perfect .and definite heat control which electricity provides for, makes for minimum waste, especially in such operations as roasting.

Electric cooking is absolutely clean from beginning to end. Utensils used for boiling always keep clean, as they are not exposed to the tarnishing and blackening action of a flame.

Many domestic articles are heated electrically. Among these may be mentioned coffee-percolators, egg boilers, waffle-irons, laundry machines and irons, toasters and kettles. Electric fires and radiators are used extensively for house-warming.

Gas cookers are made in great variety. In selecting one, care should be taken to see that it is of suitable size.

Advantage should be taken of the rack fixed above the cooker to warm plates. Some cookers are fitted with hot closets for heating plates and food in place of a plate rack.

There are many features to recommend cooking by gas, chief among them being:

1. The readiness with which the gas can be lighted and extinguished.
2. The heat can be readily and instantly regulated, being concentrated precisely where required by means of different burners, each of which is independent of the others.
3. The majority of ovens have a thermostat which regulates the heat of the oven automatically. The oven will then keep at any desired temperature, enabling perfect control of cooking to be maintained.
4. Modern cookers are finished in white and a large variety of colours of vitreous enamel. They can be kept clean by a simple wipe with a damp cloth.

The oven of a gas cooker is usually made of pressed steel. There is a jacket of slag wool behind the inner and outer linings, which minimizes the conduction of heat from the oven to the surrounding air.

Most cookers have the burner inside the oven (internally heated), but some are externally heated. In both cases care should be taken when lighting atmospheric burners to see that the resulting flame has an inner cone and is blue in colour. If it is yellow, it has not been lit properly.
The inside of the oven and the top of the cooker are lined with porcelain in order that they may be kept clean easily. The oven is efficiently ventilated, so that the mixed flavour produced by cooking different materials in the same oven is obviated.

All modern cookers are provided with good and efficient grills, some of which can be deflected upwards and used as boiling burners. Other cookers have a solid plate over the grill, and this can be used as a simmering plate, and increases die efficiency of the grill. Modern cookers also have an automatic flash ignition on the hotplate, by which means any burner lights up immediately the tap is turned on. Other lighting devices, gas matches for example, are commonly fitted.

Before cooking on a gas stove, the thermostat should be set to the number indicated on the chart, and, if fitted, sliding shelves should be adjusted to the desired position. After 15-20 minutes, the oven is ready for use. If no thermostat is fitted, the oven burners should be turned down.

When putting a match or taper to any gas burner, the bride should be careful that there is no "lighting back" accompanied by a roaring noise. The tap should be turned on just before the flame is applied. Automatic ignition will eliminate matches, and some gas stoves are fitted with burners that cannot light back.

If she lives in the country, the young bride may use an oil stove. She should choose a model with a large reservoir for oil, so that the burners can be kept alight for a lengthy period without the necessity for constant supervision. Wicks must be trimmed regularly, and never allowed to char. Oil-stoves must not stand in a draught. In the best stoves, the air combines with the flame, and thus gives a blue colour and a very intense heat, which may be regulated as required.

HOUSE WARMING AND FIRES

Many varieties of open fireplaces can be obtained. Some up-to-date patterns have large brick backs; and others have moveable canopies, intended to regulate the draught. Many are fitted with slow combustion frets to check the continual rush of air under the fire.

Some economical fireplaces are made without front bars, and the fire-brick at the back is inclined well forward, so as to throw the heat out into the room and prevent its escape up the chimney. The grate should be much wider at the front than at the back.

With an open fireplace, the room is heated by radiation, whereas an independent fireplace or stove heats the room not only by radiation but by reflection. The back of the stove is exposed to the air of the room as well as the front of the fire, and greater heat is obtained without increasing the consumption of fuel.

In the closed portable heating stove (of which type the anthracite stove is the most effective example) a flue encircles the interior, and carries the heat generated from the burning anthracite round the body of the stove before it enters the chimney. The fire is visible through a mica panelled door. The rate of fuel consumption is carefully regulated to suit the temperature required, and the upper part of the stove forms a reservoir for fuel to last for twenty-four hours. The fuel for such stoves must be chosen with care, and the maker's recommendation followed.

Electric heaters are useful in rooms where no chimney exists. Some types, besides producing considerable warmth, lend the room a cheerful and cosy appearance. An indes­tructible substance, resembling coal, is used and when the current is switched on it glows and flickers like a coal fire. This type of fire may be fitted to any variety of grate, period grates and braziers being most artistic and effective.

Gas stoves have these advantages over coal fires: (a) a complete absence of ashes and dirt; (b) the heat can be regulated at will, or dispensed with when not required; (c) it does away with the carrying of coal into, and ashes and refuse out of, the room; and (d) the atmosphere is free from dust, and curtains, pictures, etc., are preserved. Many gas-stoves approach coal-fires in the cheerful effect produced. For bedrooms and occasional use, a gas-fire is economical.

In a large house, where the carrying of coal and ashes involves considerable labour, hot-water radiators are recom­mended, but it is not advisable to introduce this system of heating except in a new house.

LABOUR-SAVING AIDS

The young wife will find that she has quite enough to cope with these days without doing any unnecessary work. She should therefore use as many labour-saving devices in the house as possible.

Unfortunately, even now, very few houses are built on labour-saving lines; in fact, the architect (perhaps because he is a man!) seems to go out of his way to make things as difficult as possible for the poor housewife. However, making allowances for structural difficulties, the young wife can still find plenty of ways in which her labours can be lightened.

In a labour-saving house or flat, the kitchen walls will be white-tiled, and the floor will be made of some rubber composition, soft to the feet, and easy to keep clean. There will be no decorative and unnecessary mouldings or fittings on which dust would collect. Fittings and furniture will be of white enamel and as compact as possible. The table top and sink will be of porcelain, and adjustable to the young wife's height. To economize space, the cupboards will be built into the wall, and will have glass doors so that articles may be found at a glance.

Circulators, heated by gas, may be installed. They take up litde space and heat a good supply of water, a hot bath being ready about half an hour after the gas is lighted. In a small house or flat, a geyser, or an electric water-heater will be adequate.

If ash pans are lifted bodily and placed into closed-in cinder sifters, dust will not smother the room as it often will if ashes are removed carelessly. The ashes fall to the bottom of the sifter and the cinders may be returned to the fire.

A rubbish destructor or incinerator will be found invalu­ablein flats and town houses where rubbish is not always easily disposed of. This apparatus is operated by gas, and does not create an unpleasant odour.

Aluminium, enamelled ware, and fireproof china and glass, are light to lift and easy to clean. Aluminium utensils do not rust, and food when kept in them some time does not turn bad.

Earthenware casseroles, after being wiped, may be taken straight from the oven to the table. They should be as shallow as possible, as food can then be cooked more quickly.

Fireproof glassware is clean, and has the advantage that the contents may be viewed whilst cooking without lifting the lid, and may be taken straight from the oven to the table.

A pan-lifter is a very handy utensil. It is merely a small handle with pincer-like claws at one end, and is of great assistance in lifting hot and heavy dishes, kettle lids and hot plates. Handles of cooking utensils may also be insulated, thus preventing many burns.

Steamers with three or more tiers will be found invaluable. By their use, practically a whole meal may be cooked at once on a single gas-ring, saving time, worry and fuel. Steam may also be shut off from each separate compartment by merely pressing a valve.

Roasters are most useful when only a gas-ring is available. They will also fry, steam and boil. These utensils consist of a covered enamelled dish, oval-shaped with a recessed bottom which collects and retains the heat. Pressure cookers are becoming popular and reduce cooking time considerably.

The Hall

Brass-work on the front door should be kept to a minimum. It can be lacquered at small cost.

Stairs should be fitted with wooden or glass stair rods to save polishing, and, when possible, built with rounded corners so that dust can be easily removed.

Marble steps look imposing, and do not need whitening each morning. Steps may be reddened, and this saves labour.

The Dining Room

Meals served on a bare polished table mean a smaller laundry bill. Asbestos mats may be used to protect the table from hot dishes and plates.
If the tops of the sideboard and other side tables are covered with plate-glass, they can easily be kept clean, and will not get scratched.

Electric kettles, tea infusers, hot plates, toasters, milk-boilers, grillers and other articles, make the preparation of meals both quick and simple.

A hatch between dining room and kitchen lessens work, and helps to keep meals hot.

A service wagon, moving on rubber-tyred, swivel-acting wheels, serves to carry an entire meal from kitchen to dining room, at one time.

The Bedroom

Only necessary furniture should be included in the bed­room. Boxes should not be put under beds or piled on top of cupboards. The minimum of bed-hangings and draperies should be employed.

In modern houses, wardrobes and cupboards are built right into the walls. This saves dusting and cleaning, and adds to the capacity of the rooms.

As in the dining-room, the toilet tables may be covered with plate-glass.

An electric bed-warmer cannot leak like a hot-water bottle, and will maintain the required temperature as long as detired.

A small electric-stove or gas-fire is more handy in the bedroom than anywhere else. It can be put on a few minutes before going to bed, and again before getting up, if necessary. A radiator or grid, connected with the central heating system, ensures an even and healthy temperature.

The Bathroom

A porcelain enamel bath is the easiest to keep clean. If the bath is rounded at the bottom, less water will be required to fill it.

In some cases where gas water-heaters are used, thermo­stats automatically reduce the consumption of gas as soon as the water reaches the required heat

Apparatus for warming towels and clothes may be con­nected either to the central heating system of the house or to the bath-water circulator system.
The walls of the bathroom should be tiled, or, failing this, covered with a thick varnished tile-paper. The floor is best covered with a composition of rubber and cork.

Washing machines go far towards easing the labour of washing day. All the operations—rubbing, wringing, rinsing, etc.—once performed by human fingers are carried out automatically by mechanical aids.

Washing-up machines, usually worked by electricity, automatically remove the grease and solid matter, and pro­mote a continuous flow of running water until the crockery is clean, when it is lifted out and drained, also without further handling.    Sometimes machines dry the crockery as well.

The vacuum cleaner is one of the greatest labour-saving devices ever introduced into the home. By its aid, dust may be drawn from carpets, pictures, curtains, hangings and upholstery. It creates no dust while in operation.

Long-handled mops save kneeling, and can be worked into any corner.    A long-handled dust-pan is equally useful.

Specially prepared oiled dusters, which collect the dust and prevent it from flying about, and short-handled dusting mops make dusting a much quicker and more pleasant duty than it was.

All kinds of chemical and scientific solvents and polishes exist to help the young wife. There are special cleansers for woodwork, others for wallpaper, windows and baths, not to mention the various furniture creams and metal polishes.

FURNISHING

Furnishing the new home is an anxious and onerous undertaking for the newly married couple.

Before purchasing any important piece of furniture the future home should be carefully inspected, and a plan made, with exact measurements of the height, breadth and length of every room, and of all recesses. A few inches difference may make impossible or useless a suite or article particularly fancied, or recommended by a salesman who has never seen the room. Then, again, before any purchases are made, a list of the articles desired and necessary should be made and considered, priced and estimated. No amount of trouble is too much, for to many people the complete furnishing of a house or flat is a task that comes but once in a lifetime, and some of the articles selected may have to last as long.

The sum that can be devoted to the purpose should be carefully calculated, and if not sufficient, expenditure on strictly necessary articles should be allowed for, before buying superfluities and luxuries.

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