Guide to sanitary inspections

Front matter

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Preface

In revising the fourth edition of "A Guide to Sanitary House Inspection," it was deemed advisable to enlarge the scope of the book by adding considerable new matter. The matter of the original book has been thoroughly revised, and there are besides a new chapter on the sanitary inspection of public buildings and another on sanitary surveys of cities and towns. A novel feature is the embodying in the text of a large number of question schedules, relating to the sanitary inspection of city residences, tenement-houses, and apartments, country houses, schools, hospitals, theatres, and institutions. The majority of these question schedules have been prepared by the author and have been found useful in his practice as consulting engineer.

The chief aim of this little volume is to outline broadly the main features of sanitary inspection work. While one of its aims is to instruct the layman, the householder, the owner of tenements, the principal of a school, the superintendent of a hospital, the manager of a theatre, it is believed that the book will be also useful to health and sanitary inspectors, to boards of health, to fire department officials, insurance companies' inspectors, and to architects, civil engineers, and building superintendents in general.

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The principal scope of the book is to be a reliable guide and pocket-book for the search for sanitary defects. For this reason brevity was essential, and it was not feasible to give in detail the reasons why certain constructions or arrangements are deemed to be defective and unsanitary. Those who are in search of this latter information may find it in some of the other works of the author. A general bibliography on sanitary surveys and building inspections is placed at the end of the book. Its title has been changed in conformity with its revision, to Guide to Sanitary Inspections.

Wm. Paul Gerhard

New York, 33 Union Square, January 1, 1909