Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 88.djvu/667

 Popular Science Monthly

��639

���as an insulator against the heat. With the two-story type shown, however, there is no insulating space between the roof proper and the ceiling of the sleeping rooms except the thick- ness of the rafters, usu- ally about 6 ins., and sometimes only 4 ins., which is not sufficient to protect the interior of the house from the out- side heat. Of course this disadvantage may be overcome to a cer- tain extent by cover- ing the roof with asbes- tos shingles or with some other roofing material which will resist the heat, but unless the roof is well shaded by trees it will be- almost impos- sible to keep the roof cool enough in the heat of summer to stop the heat from entering the second floor.

One of the finest small bungalows which the writer has ever had the pleas- ure of erecting is illustrated in Fig. 4. While not costing as much as many others constructed by him, it is never- theless a complete bungalow and for this reason it will be used as an example of what a modern bungalow should be. It was erected at a cost of $5100, com- plete, including a steam-heating plant and an automatic water-heater.

This bungalow is 28 ft. in width and 38 ft. in length as shown on the plan. The cellar has 7 ft. of headroom under the girder and 7 ft. 8 ins. of headroom under the joists, which not only obviates a continual bumping of one's head, but is of great assistance to the proper in- stallation of the heating plant. The foundation walls extend 2 ft. above grade and are built of blue flint stone above grade and of limestone below. Limestone is used below, since flint "sweats" underground so that a flint stone wall is damp practically all of the time. Limestone, on the other hand, does not make a pleasing eff"ect above ground, in the majority of cases, as it is inclined to be full of little holes and

��Fig. 4. Floor plan of a success- ful bungalow, costing $5,100 complete

��imperfections which stand out as glaring defects in the bright sunlight. The square bays which project on the east and west sides of the house are supported by large stone corbels in place of the ordinary' wood brackets. The eaves overhang the house about 2 ft. 6 ins. and are pattern-cut raft- er-ends, as shown in Fig. 5- The exterior is covered with gray- stained shingles which come very close to matching the gray of the massive stone chim- ney which extends up the outside of the build- ing. The trim, or out- side woodwork, other than the shingles, was painted white so that the color scheme of the building was merely stone gray and white. Bungalows, in general, should be painted with quiet color com- binations such as the one just given; with two shades of the same color or with direct contrasts, a dark color such as green or brown is used for the body and white, pearl gray or some other direct contrast is used for the trim. Bungalows may be cov'ered either with lap, bevel siding or shingles, although the latter are usually the most pleasing. Stucco or brick veneer may be used, although a bungalow loses a great deal

��^k

���o.c

Ou//'&r

Fig. 5. The eaves of the bungalow are artistic in pattern with cut rafter-ends

�� �