50 tilating-pipe being closed by a temporary air-
To-all whom it may concern:
Be itknown that I FREDERIC TUDOR of New York city New York have invented certain new and useful Improvement in Testing Drain-
s Pipes of which the following is a specification.
It is well known that the leakage of sewer-gases from waste or drain pipes into the apart-men tsof dwellings is very prejudicial to health and is a source of fatal diseases which hence
10 renders it very desirable that some means be provided of testing such pipes or so constructing them that they may be readily tested to determine whether any leaks exist and if so to show their location so that they may be easily
15 found and stopped. The only means hereto fore employed for this purpose is to charge the pipes with water and search for leaks which will be indicated by an escape of water at the leaking place. This however is troublesome
20 and unsatisfactory and is liable to cause great damage to the dwellings should any serious leak exist.
My invention aims to provide a means where-by the drain or waste pipes may be tested in
25 a convenient sure and safe manner; and the annexed drawing together with the following description will show in what the invention consists and how it is applied.
The figure in the drawing represents a sec-
tional elevation of a three-story house with cellar showing the system of drains also in section.
The drains consist of a main horizontal and vertical pipe a receiving the rain-water leaders a' and also a ventilating-pipe b which passes through the roof of the house and from which lateral branches extend within the house to the upper bends of the several traps of the water-closets sinks bath - tubs and wash basins while the waste from said traps is discharged into separate branch pipes a2 connecting with the main waste-pipe a as fully illustrated in the drawing. It may be now observed that all the openings of the drains whereby the interior might be in free communication with the outer air are represented in the drawing as closed the openings thereof in the house being closed by the water in the traps which is their usual condition the ven-

tight hood tied over the same while the rain=leaders are closed by boards or plugs and air-tight packings placed across the pipes at some convenient point in the manner of a roughly-made gate-valve as indicated at c c. Finally 55 the whole system of drains as relates to their contained air is isolated from the sewer by means of a trap at k or where there is no trap a plug or valve may be used. The arrangement is hence such that if air be forced into 6o the drain-pipes by way of one of the branch waste-pipes whose trap may be emptied for that purpose pressure will be accumulated if the pipes are tight but not otherwise. For this purpose however I provide the ventilat- 65 ing-pipe b—say on the top floor—with a special opening or nipple f; for the attachment of a gage e and air-forcing apparatus which nipple may be closed at all other times. To test the pipes air may now be blown into the pipes 70 by the breath through the nipple f and an attached mouth-piece and where the drains are not too large or numerous a pressure may be readily accumulated within the drains in this way if they are not too leaky and this 75 pressure will be indicated by the gage or manometer e attached to the nipple f.
In the case of newly-laid drains in an ordinary dwelling-house no further apparatus than
as just described is necessary and if the press- 8o ure produced by the force of the breath in the pipes is maintained which will be shown by the gage the drains may be considered tight; if not leaks must exist. Where the pipes are numerous large or leaky however a more 85 powerful blowing apparatus than the human lungs will be necessary such as a bellows or air-pump as shown at g the discharge-pipe of which is connected with the testing-nipple f. To test the pipes by this apparatus it is only 90 necessary to see that all the regular openings of the drains are closed as before described and then to operate the pump g. If the pipes and joints are all tight a pressure will now be speedily accumulated and maintained within 95 the same and this will be clearly indicated by the gage. If however there are small leaks the pressure will slowly diminish; and if the leaks are large no pressure can be accumulated all of which will be shown by the action loo of the gage. The exact location of the leaks can be obtained by forcing the air through a
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chamber h containing strongly-odorous material—such as oil of peppermint spirits of camphor or other powerful and distinctive scent—placed between the air-pump and the nipple f so that the air entering the drains will be strongly scented and its escape from any leak will enable the latter to be accurately located. by scent which leaks may then be closed so as to render the pipes tight.
io The chamber H is connected with the pipe It through which the air is forced by branch pipes i i and cocks j j at each end and between the branch pipes i i is set a cock k by means of which the air from the pump may be either
15 forced directly through the pipe it or may be passed around through the chamber as de-sired by simply turning the cocks in the proper positions.
In case it is desired to obtain a greater de-
20 gree of pressure than the traps will allow checkvalves can be put into the waste-pipes or the traps may be securely plugged when the pressure may be increased to the desired extent.
By this means it will be seen that the drains
25 of a house whether new or old may be quickly tested in a convenient and certain manner
which will avoid injury to the house insure the detection of leaks and enable the same to be stopped up so as to render the drains tight and in correct sanitary condition which has been heretofore very desirable.
I am aware that it is not new to test gas-pipes by pumping air or ether or other odorous material into them and therefore I make no claim broadly to the testing of pipes by pumping into them either air or strong scents.
What I claim is
The combination with a system of drains substantially such as set forth of a branch or air pipe having an opening or nipple f a pump g scent-chamber H air-pipe h branch pipes i i provided with cocks j j andcommunicating with the opposite ends of the scent-chamber and the cock k between said branch pipes whereby either common or scented air may be forced into the drains at will for testing said drains substantially as shown and described.
FREDERIC TUDOR. Witnesses:
S. H. WALES
EDWARD H. WALES.
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