A good friend of mine is rehabbing his house. He called me over one day to show me something that confused him. When I showed up he asked if I had ever seen, or heard of people putting bars of soap in their walls? After saying no, he took me to the back of his house, were he had removed old 3/4″ T&G pine from his walls. In each stud bay there is fire blocking about 4′ from the floor, and a new bar of soap sitting in each bay on the fire blocking. It looks like the house was build in the late 40’s to early 50’s, with a possible remodel in that back west facing room. Does anyone have an idea as to why this was done?
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Replies
Pest control...
3 things come to mind.
1. Most soap has perfume in it. Maybe they wanted a "clean-smelling" home.
2. Possibly it discourages some sort of pest?
3. Superstition.
Bill
That's a new one on me. I've never found soap in a wall. Razor blades are pretty common though.
jt8
"When one door closes another door opens; but we so often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door, that we do not see the ones which open for us." -- Alexander Graham Bell
Razor blades, as in they slid them into the gap on the side of the medicine cabinet and they fell into the wall? I found some in my house.
"I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
old medicine cabinets had a slot in the middle for dropping razor blades in to dispose of them safely in the wall cavity.
"dispose of them safely"Define SAFELY!.
.
Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
Hi, Bill -
Here's a note from an old English teacher who is slowly being driven (more) nuts by your new tagline -
It's "Hey, every group....."
just turn the tag lines off
Duh! How?
Go to "my Forums"..."preferences" click the box that says "hide signatures"...hit "sumit" an yer golden.
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
I have irriatable Vowel syndrome.
Thanks! Great thing about BT is that I keep learning new stuff!
Bill -
Actually, that was a very safe way to dispose of those old razor blades. They were never going to see the light of day again - until someone opened the wall cavity. They were safer in the wall than in the trash can where someone (like a kid) may slice open a finger digging something out.
When/if I see one of those old medicine cabinets, I know to be careful if I'm opening the cavity. - lol
yesjt8
"When one door closes another door opens; but we so often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door, that we do not see the ones which open for us." -- Alexander Graham Bell
The old (at least mid-late 50's) medicine cabinets had a slot in back to drop used safety razor blades. Even marked on cabinet.
My house didn't have the original cabinets but the blades were in there.I did find a postcard when I removed the bad attempt at covering the original ironing board insert in the rental, though. Postmarked 40 years to the day that I found it."I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
Edited 12/16/2006 1:18 pm by highfigh
Postmarked 40 years to the day that I found it.
You should write back.
Maybe get a movie deal out of it.
Happy
Holidays
Actually, it was confirmation for dental surgery so I think I'll pass.
"I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
Tell 'em you're sorry that you missed the appointment.
How's that, Kate?SamT
Now if I could just remember that I am a businessman with a hammer and not a craftsman with a business....."anonymous". . .segundo <!----><!---->
Do you have any idea of a brand or type?
At that age was a pure soap, homemade lye soap, or a detergent soap?
In the dim, very dim recess of my mind I think that I have heard an old wifes tale about using soap as a repellant.
.
Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
The brand of bar soap is, Lever Brothers , Cambridge, Mass.
around here, some people drill h9oles in soap and string it on a rope to dangle around the garden in the belief that it repells deer. I guess it does, until they get used ot it in a few weeks
but I know for a fact that mice will eat soap
I've never heard of it repelling insects
So I was leaning to the perfume smell deodorizer theory, but I don't know if Lever used perfumes.
Welcome to the
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where ...
Excellence is its own reward!
I cannot imagine for the life of me why someone would have to worry about deer in their walls.
This is an interesting thread though-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
WWPD
How about a deer running through a window and bouncing off the walls in a house?
We have a client who seems to be disaster prone, anyway on one occasion a deer crashed through their front window. Mind you this is a residential neighborhood that has some wooded land around it, not a house buried in the trees.
The deer crashed through a window on the front of the house (the side not facing the trees). It was maybe 21" wide and 5' or so tall... with between the glass blinds...
You want to see a bloody mess, take a look at a house after a deer cuts the hell out of itself busting through a window then proceeds to bounce off the walls for a while unitl someone arrives and opens some doors...
It is my understanding the deer is charging its reflection; unlike birds who think the reflection of the sky is real sky.
I have also been told that shiny pinwheels suction cupped to the window help prevent this disaster.
I have a customer that was describing this to me in the context of watching a buck through his window get "aggressive". It was daytime and the light was just-so to make the window very mirror like from outside. He went out a side door to scare it off, then went and bought the pinwheels.
http://jhausch.blogspot.comAdventures in Home BuildingAn online journal covering the preparation and construction of our new home.
Known as partridge up here, ruffed grouse often whack somebody's window. Like deer, they live in wooded habitat and head for what they see as a daylight opening. They don't see the window or a reflection, they look right past it for a place to go. Back on topic, I heard that soap will break the scent trail that ants follow. At one time, ants must have been a wide spread nuisance in the home. Ant traps were common on kitchen cabinets and storage containers. I'm restoring a Hoosier cabinet and just bought some traps for the feet that would have been original.Beat it to fit / Paint it to match
"but I know for a fact that mice will eat soap"Do they leave a trail of bubbles when they run through the house?
"I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."
"Do they leave a trail of bubbles when they run through the house?"
only when they pass gas...
Rat detector. If there's no soap in your wall, you might have rats. If there's soap - no rats.
Ron
Slight hijack alert.
Thanks! Your package went out Monday or Tues..I forget for sure.
It is a very cool tool, and sharp.
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
I have irriatable Vowel syndrome.
It's a good thing to have in your hands from time to time.
Ron
if the soap contains borax it will in fact keep termites and roaches away
when i use to build commerical kitchens and bars I'd always put powered borax in the stud bays seemed to work... I know for a fact nothing was as bad as the pawn shops i use to have... think of who pawns nice warm inside electronic and microwaves ( back when these things had some value) anyway i started put it in the stud bays of the pawnshops also.... no roaches... I still own one building with a pawnshop in it... and it still has never had a bug problem and i built that 15yrs ago
p
Edited 12/15/2006 11:20 pm ET by ponytl
You gonna do the same thing to the condo walls before you close them up?
ANDYSZ2WHY DO I HAVE TO EXPLAIN TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY THAT BEING A SOLE PROPRIETOR IS A REAL JOB?
REMODELER/PUNCHOUT SPECIALIST
was think'n that i would... pretty sure i have a 55gal drum of the stuff somewhere...
I still owe you lunch.... i know ur busy but...... i know u eat
p
Waiting for a rainy day
ANDYSZ2WHY DO I HAVE TO EXPLAIN TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY THAT BEING A SOLE PROPRIETOR IS A REAL JOB?
REMODELER/PUNCHOUT SPECIALIST
"pretty sure i have a 55gal drum of the stuff somewhere..."
Of course.
:)
Rich BeckmanThis signature line intentionally left blank.
perhaps the house had leg cramps?
damn, am I fat!
I was thinking the same thing--putting bars of soap under the sheets or rubbing the sheets with soap is supposed to stop leg cramps. Haven't tried that yet!
I'm only guessing here but I think that is an old fashon fire supression system. The purpose behind fire blocking is to slow the progress of a fire burning through the walls of your house. By placing a bar of soap on top of the fire block it seams to me that the bar of soap would likely melt making it more difficult for the fire to burn through the block.
Hey, Doc-
Welcome to Breaktime! I see you just joined today, and you're already jumping in with both feet.
Yea, I'm having a blast!
Good to meet you Shep
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