This CD-ROM course, BPR 140: Mechanical Systems, is designed to familiarize the student with the plumbing, electrical, heating, ventilating, air conditioning, and insulation systems in historic buildings. The department recognizes that each of these trades is a career in itself and that this course can’t possibly teach you everything about these trades. What this course does attempt to do is to:
- Provide a working vocabulary in each of the areas.
- Discuss issues in each of the areas that specifically deal with historic preservation.
- Establish a beginners level understanding of how each of these areas work in a building and provide some useful information on how to diagnose and remedy simple problems.
- Present an historical perspective on the development of each of these trades.
This video shows how to build small drystone retaining walls from beginning to end; laying out the shape, digging the foundation, determining the wall angle, building the face, packing the back, and leveling the top.
Read more →
Soiling of limestone caused by air pollution has been studied at the Cathedral of Learning on the University of Pittsburgh campus. The Cathedral was constructed in the 1930s during a period of heavy pollution in Pittsburgh, PA.
Read more →
Air pollution has been responsible for increasing the rate of deterioration of many historically and culturally valuable monuments.
Read more →
