All
windows forward of the boat deck main entrance,
in the officers’ quarters, were of the usual White
Star Line pattern, equipped with metal frames;
while the officers’ mess windows had teak frames,
being rounder. The officers’ quarters and Marconi
suite were heated by steam, but the Captain enjoyed
the luxury in his quarters of electric radiators.
(2) In the boat deck entrance and gymnasium, the
window frames were made of teak, about one-third
made to open, which were fitted with a door hook
in order to allow them to be kept partially open
and an ordinary house window clip to keep them
closed. These large windows were two feet four
inches in width, the rectangular section being
three feet eleven inches long, and the arched
top fifteen inches high. The rectangular panes
were fourteen inches in length and 7¾ inches in
width, the astragals 1¼ inches wide and the outer
frame generally 1¾ inches thick.
On
A-deck, Utley’s French windows were fitted to
the staterooms on the foreside of the main entrance
[deckhouse], having brass frames. The A-deck grand
staircase entrances, lounge and smoke room corridors
were all equipped with the same windows as those
fitted on the boat deck grand staircase entrance
and gymnasium. The reading and writing room, lounge,
smoke room and veranda café windows were described
as being ‘of special make.’ Outside staterooms
situated in the deckhouse forward of the grand
staircase were ventilated by windows; but the
interior rooms had skylights for ventilation and
lighting (seen at the foot of the officers’ quarters
in boat deck photographs). The fore and aft corridors
were heated by steam pipes running fore and aft
on the boiler room casing, while the port and
starboard corridors were ventilated by trunks
and a port at the fore end; the windows on the
forward deckhouse wall admitted light to the fore
and aft corridors. Interior staterooms were lighted
by two fixed oval coaming lights. The lounge and
smoke room corridors were heated and ventilated
by the Thermotank system.
As
described by an observer, the B-deck deckhouse
windows were as follows:
‘All
the staterooms at the fore end, and three rooms
on each side at the fore end are fitted with Utley’s
vertical sliding windows, thirty-two by nineteen
inches – one window to each room. The remainder
of the staterooms on B-deck are fitted with vertical
upward sliding windows made of teak, similar to
those fitted on the Mauretania, the Cunard Company
– at the request of Mr. Bruce Ismay – having supplied
to Messrs. Harland & Wolff the full size working
drawings of the Mauretania’s windows on B-deck.
Size of clear glass 25½ by 18¾ inches. A mahogany
jalousie and a cathedral glass vertical sliding
window are also fitted inside – two windows to
each room.’ (3)
The
rooms at the forward end of B-deck were ventilated
by the windows and ventilated on the Bibby principle,
while the passageways were ventilated by trunks
and the windows at the fore end. Ordinary staterooms
forward on B-deck were heated by electric radiators
and the passageways heated by a steam pipe on
the boiler room casing, while the special en-suite
B-deck rooms were ventilated by their own windows,
the inner rooms ventilated by trunks. Abaft the
forward grand staircase, the corridors were heated
and ventilated by the Thermotank system.
C-deck
staterooms forward of the grand staircase – all
on the Bibby principle – were fitted with Utley’s
patent pivoted oval portholes, of twenty-four
by nineteen inches, one for each cabin forward,
but the special suite rooms aft of the forward
grand staircase entrance enjoyed the luxury of
two portholes. The forward staterooms enjoyed
a twenty-four by eight inch trunk fitted along
the ship’s side with louvers into the rooms near
the beds. Special suite rooms were ventilated
by the portholes, while being heated by electric
radiators; but the inside rooms were ventilated
by louvers in the air trunks, being ‘heated electronically.’
As on the deck above, the fore and aft corridors
were heated and ventilated by the Thermotank system.
(It is worth noting at this point that ‘nearly
all the first class cabins throughout’ the ship
had been fitted with fans.)
Staterooms
forward of the reception room on D-deck were fitted
with the same portholes as on the deck above,
as was the second class dining saloon; the rooms
were ventilated by the ports, but also utilised
trunks under the beds at the side as on C-deck,
being heated by electric radiators.
The
first class dining saloon and galley portholes
were as follows: one 17½ inch glass hinged (opening)
port directly above a lower nineteen inch clear
glass fixed porthole. As the smaller porthole
is the opening port, there are the following advantages:
higher above the waterline, spray is less likely
to reach it; being a smaller port, less spray
would be admitted in any case; and, situated higher
in the dining saloon, warmer air from the saloon
rising is exuded in a greater quantity. It is
interesting to note that following Olympic’s maiden
voyage, two fans were installed over the gratings
in the ceiling, ‘in a position about midway between
the boiler [room] casings and some sixteen feet
out from the middle line.’ Additional fans were
placed in the middle of the saloon, in order to
further assist the ventilation. Despite the porthole
configuration, the saloon’s single-story design
was admittedly not perfect for ventilation. Then
again, on earlier liners – such as the over-gilded,
turn-of-the-century lavish German speedsters of
Norddeutscher Lloyd – which had vast open wells
any culinary aromas were perceptible on every
deck level. The porthole arrangement allowed additional
lighting into the saloon, although the portholes
were hidden by special glass inboard. Made of
‘Luxfer’ prismatic panes, placed in various positions,
the inner part of the windows was leaded glass;
when the windows were closed, the outline of the
portholes was impossible to discern, their light
being diffused well over the ‘whole surface of
the inner glass.’ Inside the interior windows,
on each side of the frame, there was a strip of
‘Linolite’ fitted, which proved very effective
at night time.
Portholes
in the first and second class staterooms, as well
as those in the crew quarters, on E-deck were
eighteen inches in diameter; although it is interesting
that the portholes were slightly smaller in diameter
at the bow and stern, where they were most exposed
to damage from the sea. In order to get a good
circulation of air in the starboard first class
amidships corridor on this deck, a door made of
wire netting was fitted to get a current of air
from the third class stairway; however, this proved
a mixed blessing, one first class passenger noting
that the noise of third class passengers swearing
was obtained, rather than fresh air.
F-deck
portholes were fifteen-inch Utley’s ventilating
ports in the engineers’ quarters abreast the engine
room, while twelve-inch portholes – some of them
Utley’s ventilating ports – serviced the remainder
of the deck.
On
G-deck, the deck closest to the waterline, twelve-inch
ports were fitted, a small percentage of those
which serviced the third class areas being ventilating
portholes.
Throughout
the ship, the air from the lavatories, galleys
and pantries was exhausted by powerful fans, the
inlet of fresh air being the entrances and side
ports, where fitted. It is interesting that the
crew galley flue on the port forecastle allowed
the smell of cooking to be perceptible on the
forward first class promenade, which may be a
reason why it was subsequently reconfigured. All
first, second and third class public rooms, second
and third class accommodation and crew quarters
were heated and ventilated by the Thermotank system.
It is interesting, however, that apparently the
Thermotank Company had nothing to do with the
installation; Harland & Wolff had imitated it.
Despite
the extent of the ventilation system, it became
apparent on Olympic shortly after she entered
service that in places of the ship ventilation
was inadequate; for example, some of the interior
cabins on C and B decks – although equipped with
louvers – were some distance from the fans inside
and thus did not have optimum airflow. There was
no trouble experienced with the working of the
fans, but it was recommended that additional fans
were required. (4) Many of the first class staterooms
experienced uncomfortably warm air in summer.
Neither could it have helped that the B-deck corridors
in first class were generally tightly sealed,
which may explain partly – in addition to the
extra B-deck staterooms on Titanic – why the second
ship’s forward B-deck wall had two doors opening
onto the corridors. However, the present author
is not aware of any passenger complaints regarding
the ventilation subsequent to Olympic’s maiden
voyage. Changes were made to the ventilation during
Olympic’s 1913 refit to rectify any problems,
while it is known Britannic’s systems differed
significantly; but those are another story, beyond
the scope of this brief article.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL
REFERENCES:
- (1) ‘Olympic
& Titanic: Ocean Liners of the Past,’ Epilogue
by John Maxtone-Graham, Amereon House, 1995;
page 106.
-
-
(2)
Five-hundred-and-twenty electric radiators
were installed throughout Olympic, all ‘of
the Promotheus type’ and taking a collective
current of more than five thousand amperes.
(Op. cit.: ‘Olympic & Titanic…’ page 112.)
-
(3)
Naval Architect Leonard Peskett’s observation,
August 1911.
-
(4)
Chief Engineer Joseph Bell, June 24th 1911
recommendation to Superintendent Engineer
Blake, forwarded to Messrs. Ismay, Imrie &
Co., 30 James Street, Liverpool.
About the author: Mark Chirnside
is an A/As-levels Student in Royal Leamington
Spa, Warwickshire, England. He has been interested
in the Titanic since 1993 and since then conducted
much research into the ‘Olympic’ class liners,
amongst other things writing articles for the
British Titanic Society’s ‘Atlantic Daily Bulletin’
and the Encyclopedia Titanica website.