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About Vernonia eagle. (Vernonia, Or.) 1922-1974 | View Entire Issue (March 21, 1946)
THE EAGLE, VERNONIA, ORE. THURS., MARCH 21, 1946 6 Wiring for Electrical Living, Article Subject Note: The following article, written by Mary Roche, has been submitted to The Eagle for pub lication because it tells of the need of adequate electric wiring in the home. The article ap peared in the New York Times on February 24, 1946. By Mary Roche The tempting prospect of all play and no work, inspired by the new and wonderful electric ap pliances, may have distracted us from the fact that these in ventions will not, precisely speak ing, work all by themselves. They must have current—obtained easily enough in theory by plug ging into an electrical outlet and flipping a switch. In practice, however, this perfomance can be multiplied just so many times and then comes trouble. En gineers warn us that an electrical wiring system designed to ac commodate a dozen or so lights, an iron and maybe a refrigerator, just isn’t up to taking on a toast er, a roaster, a blanket and a freezer with a couple of radios thrown in. So instead of gnash ing your teeth over the tardiness of appliances ordered last Octo ber, it might pay to investigate the load capacity of your present wiring system and ascertain whether it is prepared for the new arrivals. No house built prior to 1928 (and not rewired since then) is equipped to take care of to day’s electrical loads, according to the National Adequate Wiring Bureau, the authority in these matters. And few houses built between 1928 and 1941 are ade quately wired for 1946 require ments, much less the require ments predicted for 1956. Hence the bureau’s earnest plea to re modelers to plan on a rewiring job before they start in to add a room, streamline a kitchen or even redecorate. New home builders are urged to plan a system sufficient to take care of all the electrical equipment they have Or can af ford to buy now, plus whatever else they think they might like to have some day. For it’s ever so much cheaper to install a good system at the start than it is to improve an in adequate cne after the house ¡3 built. To help figure it all out, the industry committee of in terior wiring design has just pub lished a “Handbook of Residen tial Wiring Design,” containing diagrams for every room in the house and suggesting outlet loca tions f r every appliance you have ever dreamed of having. You can get it for 25 cents from the committee’s headquarters, Room 3650, 420 Lexington Ave., New York. Don’t pinhh your car —give it the best —give it Signai Oil Products HEATH’S Service Fh. 571! I Some of the trials of poor wiring are obvious enough— too few outlets, multiple sockets trailing tangles of extension cords. Others, if noticed at all, are usnally blamed on the wrong causes. Lamps give out less light. The radio seems to fade. Irons and cooking ap dia .ces take longer to heat up. Electric mo tors turn sluggish. It’s not their fault but just that the circuit— serving a group of several out lets and fixtures—is carrying too much of a load. Meanwhile, you pay for the same amount of cur rent, without getting the same amount of light or heat or power. If the lights dim or flicker when the oil burner goes on, that is a bad sign. If fuses blow out too often, that is another. A fuse, in case you have wondered, is merely an alarm device, a weak bridge in the circuit that will heat up and break when the lead gets too heavy, before the rest of the circuit has a chance to heat up and start a fire. A more modern version of the fa miliar screw-in fuse ¡3 the cir cuit breaker, a simple, self-oper ating switch that springs out of position when something goes wrong. After the trouble is cor rected, the switch is merely flipped ba.k into place. (No frantic hunt for a new fuse.) Circuit breakers for home use weren’t made during the war, but they are coming back again now.' As a rule you can count the circuits in a house by counting the fuies in the fuse box. Un less your hou e is very large or very modern the number is prob ably four or le s. B.t for post war electrical living, the engi neers recommend anywhere from ten to twenty. Here is the way they figure it out: Fcr every 5000 square feet of fl or area, at least one general purpose ci cuit for lighting fix tures and convenience outlets serving portable lamps, radios, vacuum cleaners, and other small and <a ional plug-in de vices. For kitchen and dining room appliance., such as r'asters, r’frigerotors, waffle irons and toasters, at least one circuit of ti :r own which is not used to l;ght.-. For laundry equipment, a- ther. And f certain individ ual app.iances, individual circuits t' wh "h no ether equipment or Fghti’ig is c r.nc'ted ' enge, wa le- ! eater, laundry drier, auto matic controls for central heat er.) While the circuits are the back bone of a home wiring system, the intake (wires leading into the house) and the outlets have to measure up too. The arrange ment of outlets, including light- i n g fixtures and multiple switches, varies somewhat with family requirements. But there ought to be a separate outlet for every appliance that is used habitually in one place so that multiple sockets and extension cords can be marked “For Emer- ency Only.” LDS Conference For District Attended At Hillsboro Sunday RIVERVIEW—Mr. and Mrs. Billie Bassett drove to Hillsboro last week end to visit her sister, Mrs. Norman Carter and family and were introduced to the in fant son who arrived at that home recently. Mrs. Carter was formerly agent for the Avon Cos metics firm in this vicinity. Congratulations go to Miss Martha Wells this week as the only member of the VHS speech class to win a place in the finals held Saturday at the Willamette University at Salem. Several members of the class were un able to get tq Salem due to bad weather. Miss Well?’ overnight guests Saturday night were Hulda White of Birkenfeld and Joyce Kat-s of Vernonia. Mrs. Polly Lynch attended the L.D.S. district conference in Hillsboro Sunday. She reports an attendance -f 300 or more and a very genial, beneficial gath ering. Snnd’V dinner gu’ ts at the L. L. Wells home were Pev. and M-s. U. S. Childs of B li'-ar, M >. Rev. Childs had c nd.ct-d serv ices at the Christian church in Vernonia that morning. Visitors at the Chas. Pa'kie home daring the week end were Mr. rnd Mrs. Bert Keck and =on Vrnnie cf Grand R nde and Mr. and Mrs. Johnnie Kr"k who came over from Sultan, Wash. Just tn while awav a Sunday, Mr. end Sirs. T. F. Hill ver d ove tn Seaside Sunday via the Jewel- Elsie route and returned by way f Astoria and Clat kanie cir cling the Oreg n northwest. 4th Birthday Is Celebrated RIVERVIEW—Mr. and Mrs. Leo Violette, who -sold their Vernonia home two weeks ago to Mr. and Mrs. Roy Sutton, par ents of Mrs. Walker, are now stopping at the Louis Violette home here. They own other homes in Vernonia but must wait until the expiration of the rental contracts on them before taking possession. A group of pre-school aged youngsters had a jolly time Mon day afternoon at the Harry Kipp home when they gathered to help little Dickie celebrate his 4th birthday anniversary. Those pres ent were Maryl, Mickie and Laura Taylor, Darla Walker and Dick’s young brothers. A dainty lunch GIVE HARRY KING YOUR ORDER FOR GROCERIES AND HAVE THEM DELIVERED TO YOUR KIT CHEN. THAT IS THE WAY TO FASE THE WORK OF GROCERY SHOPPING. AND FROM KING’S YOU GET THE BEST IN MEATS AND GROCERIES WHEN YOU ORDER. KING’S Grocery - Market i “Where Your Money Buys More” At the Mile Bridge Phene 91 Riverview Dcn’t Let This I » Happen to Your Heme i Eecause cf i IHI LGE FI ♦ » t i i ! i » « » I ♦ I * » I * » » t • I I 1 » ♦ I I t I ♦ I I ♦ I » t » » » I » I » » » » t I I f I i of ice cream and cake wa3 served by Mrs. Kipp. Monty Dewey and John Wolf helped Mr. and Mrs. Charles Bea cons move their household goods to their new home in Vernonia Saturday. Thursday visitors at the Glen Hawkins home were Mr. and Mrs. Robert Moore of St. Helens and on Sunday the Hawkins family drove to Trenholm for a visit with Grandpa Serafin. Mrs. W. D. Steele, who is still suffering from her recent acci dent, reports the following vis itors this week: Mr. and Mrs. James Walker and children and Mrs. Rutledge of Eugene from Tuesday until Thursday, Mr. and Mrs. Cleve Brown of Jewel Thursday evening and Mrs. Emil Messing Saturday. A week end guest at the Mahar home was John Hendrick son of Estacada. fusing : ÊF YOUR HOME HAS- ONE FUSE OR NONE AND WIRE LESS THAN NO. 12 IN THESE LOCATIONS: WASHROOM, KITCHEN, DINING ROOM, OR PANTRY, YOU NEED- • • PROPER PANEL, PROPER WIRE SIZE, PROPER FUSE SIZE TO PROTECT WIRE, PROPER INSTALLATION OF APPROVED EQUIPMENT. PHONE 113- COST ESTIMATES AND WIRING SUGGESTIONS. SHOP HOURS 8 A. M. TO 6 P. M. I I • l 1 ♦ I I ♦ » t » I j » I » » ♦ ♦ t I I 1 I I I t : Nehalem Dairy Products Co. United Electric & Supply Company : Union Shop — I.B.E.W. Mr. and Mr». Harry Kern» Vernonia Oregon Washington and A State License No. 510 Sts. Phone 113 II • • •
