Boxoffice-November.24.1951

'
j
Here 's
Your Biff
DOUBLE
FEATURE
in Saieiy
Theatremen
everyrvhere
rely on Dayton Safety Ladders
for maximum safety
and convenience. Ideal for
your marquees—perfect for
those odd jobs.
Daytons are constructed of
tested airplane spruce and
reinforced with rigid steel
supports to give great
strength and lightness of
weight. Sizes 3 feet to 16
feet in height (measured
from ground to platform)
with Standard Rubber Safety
Shoes at no extra cost.
Y/rite Today tor Bulletin No. A
Dayton Safety Ladder
Company
DAYTON SAFETY LADDERS
QUEEN FIRE EXTINGUISHER
SAFETY SUPPLIES
2337 GILBERT AVE., CINCINNATI 6, OHIO
In Canada—Safety Supply Company—Toronto
THEATREMAN S
ENCYCLOPEDIA
Continued from preceding page
moisture. They are not recommended for
asphalt tile, rubber or linoleum, but on
most other floors they serve a useful purpose.
A varnish type sealer, Bakelite kind preferred,
is almost essential on a wooden
floor. For best results, the floor is sanded
and then the sealer applied in two or three
coats, each coat steel wooled when dry.
The floor is then maintained by waxing.
Concrete floors are not ornamented by
the application of the Bakelite sealer, but
maintenance problems are greatly lessened.
The sealer stops any tendency to "dusting"
and makes the floor much easier to keep
clean.
For marble, terrazzo and quarry tile a
special, "water white," non-yellowing sealer
is recommended. Known generally as
"terrazzo sealers" they are made of plastic
materials and fast-drying solvents, and
usually one coat is sufficient, the purpose
being to merely fill the pores without building
up a surface film.
STEEL WOOL: If you have a floor machine,
one with a single brush, a steel wool pad
under the brush facilitates most of the
cleaning processes. Some floor machines
have special steel wool holders, but a stiff
scrub brush serves about as well.
Steel wool comes in several grades of
texture, "00" being very fine and best suited
for buffing wax and for dry cleaning rubber
and asphalt tile. No. "0" is somewhat
coarser and the grades increase in coarsenes
in the order of No. 1, No. 2 and No. 3.
The coarser grades being designed for
dressing down sealers and paints for succeeding
coats and also for cleaning very
dirty floors. Steel wool is used for both
dry and wet cleaning, but soon rusts after
the latter. It is obtainable in different
sizes to fit the different brushes.
TERRAZZO FLOORS: The predominating
floor in theatre lobbies, especially the larger
theatres. It comprises 70 per cent varicolored
marble chips in a cement matrix,
the latter usually being colored. Ground to
a smooth, polished surface, it is very attractive
and very durable floor. And because of
its varigated pattern it does not readily
show litter and soil. It may be maintained
by mopping, but alkaline cleaners must be
avoided. Acids will consume marble and
must be carefully kept away from it.
To clean terrazzo use either a good neutral
soap or one of the new non-alkaline
synthetic cleaners.
Waxing is a quick and easy way to preserve
terrazzo and simplify its maintenance,
a good water wax being preferred. Apply
two thin coats, buffing each when dry.
If, however, you are afraid to use wax
on your terrazzo, protect it with one coat
of the regular terrazzo sealers i.see Sealers).
Never use varnish or lacquer on ter-
razzo. Also avoid the use of oily dust mops!
and sweeping compounds. :
TOBACCO STAINS: Do not i
use an alkali to
remove tobacco stains as it may "set" the:
stain. Try clear water first, either on bare
floors or carpeting. If water fails, use the
formula suggested for removing lipstick.
VACUUM CLEANERS: Even more necessary
about the theatre than a floor machine is a
good industrial-type vacuum cleaner. Under
"Carpeting" we have shown its essential
need for saving carpets from soil, grit,
moths, etc. The vacuum cleaner is I
also without a substitute for going over
'
all
the floors and seats each day, removing
all dust and litter without raising a dust.
The drapes and walls may be cleaned with
"high-up" extension tubes. If you do not
wish to touch the sensitive screen with a
vacuum tool, attach the hose to the exhaust
and blow the dust off the screen.
Industrial vacuum cleaners come in many
different designs but the fundamental
function is the same. The machine adaptable
for the theatre must be easily maneuverable
so it can be pulled down the aisle,
and with enough hose to
reach at least to
the center of each row of seats. It should
have a "water lift" of not less than 50
inches and a hose of not less and one-andone-half
inches diameter. The tank i
should
have a capacity of not less than ten gallons.
VITRIFIED TILE: Clean the same as directed
for quarry tile, but sealers and waxes are
not recommended. If very dirty or stained
by traffic use an abrasive powder for
cleaning.
WAXES: Floor waxes consist of two kinds,
the solvent type which uses naphtha, turpentine
or similar solvent, drying dull and
requiring buffing for a polish, and the
water waxes which usually dry with a gloss.
Waxes are nature's own lubricant to
protect its products against friction and
moisture and are ideal treatment for nearly
all hard and resilient floors. Wax is quickly
and easily applied, dries in a matter of
minutes and gives a tone of richness to the
floor. Because dust, litter and stains seldom
adhere to a waxed surface, the latter
is much easier to clean and keep clean, in
many cases eliminating the need for mopping
or scrubbing.
It has been established by competent
authorities that two thin coats of wax,
each polished when dry, is no more slippery
than the unwaxed floor.
Nevertheless, wax manufacturers are
now offering special non-slip waxes with a
still higher coefficient of friction which
may make waxed floors safer than unwaxed
ones.
WOODEN FLOORS: Wooden floors, now fast
disappearing from theatre construction,
should be sealed with a good floor sealer
(see Sealers*, at least two coats, each steel
(Continued on next page)
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The MODERN THEATRE SECTION