Lecture IX.

Floors.

Floors difficult to classify.—Different kinds of flooring.—Different purposes of flooring.—Fire-proof floors.—Danger of ironwork in fireproof construction.—Floors divided into three classes, viz.: dwelling, warehouse, and factory floors.—Specialities of flooring.—Paving included under road-making.—Dwelling-house floors: Basement floor—Concrete floors—Cement floors—Floors above the ground line—Floors classed as single, double, and double framed—Single flooring—Double flooring—Binding joists—Bridging joists—Ceiling joists—Double-framed flooring—Plaster floors—Hearths—Concrete arches—Tile floors.—Warehouse floors: Fireproof floors—New warehouses at Marseilles—Roads in Melbourne parks—St. Pancras Station, Midland Railway.—Factory Floors: Three leading considerations.—Paving: Laying out roads—Difference between town and country—Paving classed under three heads, viz.: Pervious, impervious, and partly pervious—Two other modes of classification, viz.: Homogenous and with a permanent foundation covered by a crust to be renewed from time to time—Camber unsuited for tramways—Telford and Macadam—Bituminous Macadam—Canterbury streets—Shingle roads—Stone and wood pavements—Comparative cost of stone paving and Macadam—Noise of stone pavements—Wood paving in Chicago—Side channels—Duncdin side channels—Expense and annoyance caused by breaking up of street pavement—Remedy for same—Practical suggestions.