VOL. LVII.
INDIANAPOLIS, IND., AUG. 9, 1902.
NO. 32
%xpzxizutz grpariroent.
DISCUSS THE ECONOMIC VALUE OF PAINT.
HOW, WHEN AND WHERE SHOULD
IT BE  USED?
Paint Preserves Both Wood and Metal.
1st Premium.—The ecouoinic value of
paint is very wide and applies to all things
and substantces used in all the mechanical
arts with few exceptions. I shall include varnishes as paint, for they are
used for protection the same as paints
where we want to protect a substance
without changing the color. The economic value of paint consists of its preserving qualities. Applied to wood it excludes light, air and moisture, which are
nil conclusive to the destruction of wood.
Tile oil penerates the wood through its
pores; carrying a portion of the mineral
part of the paint iuto the pores and adhering the remainder to the surface as a protection against the climatic effects and
against the wear and tear of our' farm machinery and implements, our houses, barns,
fences, etc. In the metals it acts differently. Metal being less porous, it mainly
forms a surface protection against moisture. When ordinary metals are exposed
to moisture and air there is a continued
sloughing off from the surface, to their
destruction, ami it is difficult to keep them
thoroughly covered with paint. But unless they are kept thoroughly covered their
destruction is very rapid. If you will
examine the Virginia avenue viaduct in
the city of Indianapolis, you can plainly
sic tin* effect of steam on the metallic
parts of that structure. To specify how,
wheu and where paint should be used, I
will say, use it everywhere on wood and
iIn* courser metals. If all materials used
in the mechanical arts were given a coat
of paint before they were put together,
it wonld be a great protection, for where
two surfaces come together we find decay. Bolts and joints are loosened and
destruction follows. I would use the best
white lead as the basis of all my paints,
and if color is desired add some coloring
matter. Lead forms the best body. Where
painting is to be done, and especially if it
bat been neglected and the surface has
become dry and the paint rub's off easily,
1 would put very little paint in the oil
fur the first coat, for the oil will soften the
old paint and later coats will adhere better.
But painting should never be neglected,
for it is both economy and beauty to paint
often. Give your plows, harrows and
cultivators a coat of paint before you
house them for the winter, and give the
moldboards and tips of your cultivators
a coat of beeswax and tallow, and you will
lin.I it economy in starting in the spring.
Mil her paint or oil the handles of your
spades, shovels, rakes, hoes and forks,
and you will find that they work smoother
in your hand, besides the protection. You
may add to the looks and endurance of
your rough board and picket fence and
out buildings by giving them a coat of
< rude coal oil to which you may add some
of the cheap paints and put it on with a
white wash brush. Do not try to put all
youi* paint on in one coat. Put it on lighter
and go over it oftener and it will last the
longer. Do not leave your buggy and carriage until they begin to scale off, but
give them a coat of drop black and var-
iri-.11 each year and you will help the looks
and save expense. You can soon learn
to do yonr own painting, and if you do
yonr own painting you will be more apt
to have it done at the right time. Keep
your brushes in water when not in use and
ihey will keep soft. , To mix your paint
take out what lead you need and pour in
some oil and stir. You can -tell when it
is thin enough by the draw of the brush.
If it inclines to be sticky, put in more uil
Paint that dries slow will last better. If
you do not prime your material before it
is put together you should lose no time after it is together in giving it a coat. With
a little practice you can learn to mix paiut
aud use the brush, and will have a better
job than the cheap painter will do.
Marion   Co. I.   N.   C.
Warm Weather Best for Painting.
2d Premium.—To discuss the econjmic
value of paint we will speak principally
concerning its preserving quality. Good
paint is made from linseed oil and coloring matter, with enough zinc and white
lead to form a body for the coloring material, which forms a coat on the surface
filling up the pores and excluding the air
and water which cause the weathering.
This weathering process is simply an oxidation, caused by the action of the oxygen
in theairand wateron the substance When
it is a metallic substance we call it rust;
when it is wood we call it rot or decay.
Oxidation (decay) takes place more rapidly in the presence of heat, as shown
by the fact that things will decay more
rapidly in a warm place, and it also is always accompanied by heat. The house
that burns in 50 minutes gives off no
more heat in that time than the one that
decays away in 50 years gives off in 'hat
period. Thus the object of paint is to
prevent this weathering. Painting is
based on the theory that water and oil
(the principal preserving ingredient of
paint) will not mix. Thus if any material subject to the effects of water and air
is covered with a good coat of paint the
surface of the material, and if wood to a
considerable depth also, is filled with oil
and the water is effectually shut out, the material beneath the coat is also protected
from the oxygen in* th eair.
As to how it should be used: The surface should be thoroughly cleaned and any
cracks well filled with putty. If tho material is metal the rust should all be cut
away, or it will loosen and allow the paint
to fall off. Use a coarse brush to remove
all lint and dirt. Never wash it. The
first coat should contain a larger per cent
of oil than the others, especially if it is
needing paint badly, the principal object
being to give the wood all the oil it will
absurb. If the paint contains too much
of the zinc and lead the oil will simply be
absorbed and leave them to scale off. The
object of the other coats is to get the pores
well filled and form a body for the coloring matter. A good brush should always
be used as a poor quality of brush or
a worn-out stubby one will not spread the
paint evenly.
When it should be used: Painting
should be done in as warm weather as
possible, as the heat "drives" in the oil.
If painting is done in a shop during cold
weather the shop should be kept warm
and dry. Cold paint cannot be kept mixed
as well nor spread as evenly. To aid
in these things it is a good idea to heat
the paint by placing the can of paint in a
.ossol of water and putting it over the
fire. Do not place the can of paiut directly on the fire as it will scorch. All
material when painted should be thoroughly dry ami seasoned. If it is not
the oil cannot penetrt^e, and the water or
cap has the pores fijled, and when it irys
out will bring the paint, which has stuck
I to the surface, off with it in the form of
-cales.     Therefore the  time  to  paint  is
when the material is completely dry and
i veiything as  warm  as  possible.
Where should it be used? It should
be used on all wooden aud metallic surfaces thai are subjected to the action of the
weather. The house, barn and other
buildings for economy's sake should be
painted as often as it begins to wear
away. Good wooden fencing such as
pickets around the yard should be protected by paint. Farm implements should
be kept well painted. The mold-board
and shovels of plows, if painted when
through plowing and while the surface is
yet bright, would be protected from rust
during the season of disuse and would
give no trouble about scouring the next
season. Metal roofs will last correspondingly as they are kept well painted.
Wagons, carriages and buggies should always have a sufficient coat to protect
them. M. M. P.
Johnson  Co.
Good Appearance Adds to Sale Value.
3d Premium.—A board constantly painted will outlast three boards never painted,
is an old saying. To the experienced, the
use of paint as a saving of outside woodwork as well as inside is well known. Across
the way is au object lesson* in each. One
is a house built over 50 years ago. It
has never in all that time gone over six
years without a new coat of paiut. There
an* a few signs of weathering about it,
and with its new coat of paint put on this
Bummer it looks just as well as a new
house. Near by is one not so old by half.
It once had a prime* coat, but that is all.
The weather finally cracked aud softened
up the siding in such a way that every
owner of it declared it would take enough
oil and paint to float the house itself before an impression could be made on those
linty boards. It would be of no use to
paint it now as the siding is worn down to
half its original depth and is split and
warped by sun and rain and pulling away
from the nails, and all because of just neglect in painting. Oil and paiut preserve
all wooden buildings, as well as fences,
from climatic changes. Besides the saving
of the buildings, there is another side
greater than saving in the minds of some
people—the looks. Unpainted buildirgs
give any place a dreary, desolate look as
well as an untidy one. Well painted,
well preserved farm buildings, though the
resilience be but a cottage; fences of house
yard, as well as barn yard and surrounding lots, tastily painted to correspond with
buildings, has sold many a poor farm at an
advance on the acre to which the money
expended for paint was a small sum when
placed against the gain. And in the same
ratio, or at perhaps too great a loss, dingy,
weather-worn buildings have lessened the
sale of many a fertile farm. Too much
stress cannot be placed on keeping our
buildings painted. It is a gain in saving
and making them last. It is a gain in
looks. It enhances the value of the property. It is a salve to our self respect and
it sets an example to our careless neighbor. How it should be used depends on
the places to be used. The first coat is
mainly composed of oil; the second, heavier with the paint; the third, pretty much
all paint, is the one only good way, especially if the house or building be neediug
paint bad. There are some who give only two coats, but two coats is not enough
unless you give a couple more in a year or
two. Three good coats as I have stated,
if the paint be of good kind, should show
up in respectable way five years after.
Most painters with us recommend painting   the  house  and   buildings   every   five
or six years if they are to be kept in good
shape   lor   withstanding  time's   inroads.
When! From May until September are
the months for painting outside work. May
j nd June are considered the best, and
some painters claim that paiut put on in
these months enters wood and spreads
through it in such a way as to preserve
the color for greater length of time than
we put on in the hotter, later months. To
put it on when the weather is too hot too
often causes it to blister and let go of the
surface in a short time; and it will not do
at all to put on paint in cool weather aa
the paint, more or less, will congeal on
the brush and cannot be equalized on the
boards. This makes a mottled surface
which soon-   weathers.
Where should paint be used? If the
house be of brick it presents a better appearance and the bricks are preserved
from chipping too fast if a coat of paint is
occasionally given. But if the dwelling
be of wood, paint for the outside as well
as inside when its first need indicates
Don't wait; the longer you wait the larger
the oil and paint bill. For barns and outside buildings we all know how an occasional cost of paint brightens up the appearance of the place. I. M. S.
Rush  Co.
Premiums of $1, 75 cents and 50 cents
are given for the first, second and third
best articles for the Experience Department each week. Manuscript should be
sent direct to the Indiana Farmer Company and should reach us one week before
date of publication.
Topics for discussion in future numbers
of the Farmer are as follows:
No. 330, Aug. 16.—Tell why the farmer
and his family should attend the State
lair.
No. 337, Aug. 23.—How can you restore
worn-out land to full fertility?
No. 338, Aug. 30.—If a farmer wishes to
change from grain farming to stock farming, how should he proceed?
Weekly Crop Bulletin.
According to our weekly crop bulletin
issued by section director M. W. Hayes,
temporarily in charge, the wet weather iu
the north section of the State seriously
interfered with the completion of the oat
harvest; the soft ground rendered the operation of machines difficult, and the crop
was considerably lodged by heavy winds;
threshing was delayed, and wheat continues to sprout in the shock; much of the
latter crop remains in the fields; but little
progress was made with haying. In the
central and south sections—except in
a few localities of the former, where several showers fell—the weather was very
propitious for the threshing of wheat, oats
and rye, and the work is well advauced,
or has been finished; late haying received
general attention, and in most instances
yields were proving satisfactory. The return from the wheat crop in the north section will be affected by the injuriously wet
weather, but in the remainder of the State
it has proved quite satisfactory, as a rule;
oats are yielding well and rye is fair.
STATE FAIR HEADQUARTERS.
The headquarters for the Indiana Farmer, at the State fair, this year, will be the
third lot east of the administration building, where we will be pleased to have all
cur patrons and friends call and make
themselves at home. Free information
and check room will be established at our
headquarters in charge of a competent
person. Look for the large sign painted
| on yellow. Come and make yourselves
at home.