Jasper County Democrat, Volume 6, Number 17, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 1 August 1903 — HOW FIRES MAY START. [ARTICLE]

HOW FIRES MAY START.

Several Things That Will Cans a Spams taneous Combiiatlen. Damp lampblack will ignite from the sun’s rays. The same can be said of cotton waste moist with lard or (rther animal oil. Lampblack and a little oil or water will, under certain conditions, Ignite spontaneously. Nitric acid and charcoal create spontaneous combustion. New printers’ ink on paper when In contact with a steam pipe will Ignite quickly. Boiled linseed oil and turpentine in equal parta on cotton waste will ignite in a few hours under a mild heat, and will in time create enough heat to Ignite spontaneously, says Cassler’s Magazine. Bituminous coal should not ,be stored where It will come in contact with wood partitions or columns or against warm boiler settings or steam pipes. This coal should not be very deep if It Is to be kept on storage for a long period. If piled in the basement of a building it should be shallow and free from moisture and under good ventilation. That liable to absorb moisture should be burned first. If on fire a small quantity of water sbowered on this kind of coal cokes It and retards any great supply of water reaching the fire, thus necessitating the overhauling of the pile. Iron chips, filings or turnings should not be stored in a shop in wooden boxes. The oily waste which Is not Infrequently thrown among them adds to the danger of fire from this source. The sweepings from the machine shop, if kept on hand, should never be placed over Iron shavings. This mass of disintegrated iron is enough to Incite heat and combustion. Iron and steel filings and turnings when mixed with oil will ignite spontaneously after becoming damp. A steam pipe against wood will cause the latter to Ignite spontaneously after being carbonized, particularly If superheated steam enters the pipe, thus increasing the temperature.