Abstract :
The war has reminded us that the ultimate necessities of life are few, namely food, shelter, and the practice of hygiene. In a civilized community it is natural that these requirements of life should expand so that the enviable amenity of one generation becomes the apparent necessity of the next. It is also natural that this expansion should be most marked in the present age when scientific discovery has penetrated so many of Nature´s secrets and adapted them for the use of mankind for either destruction or survival. Electricity, the latest agent to be brought into domestic service, has fulfilled the duties required of it to a degree unapproached by any of its predecessors. Electricity in domestic service facilitates the preparation of appetizing and nutritious meals, conserves food, lights and heats the home, provides hot water for personal and household cleanliness, drives machines for washing clothes, cleaning floors and furnishings, and is the means of providing for the possibly unsocial reception of wireless broadcasts. The great majority of electrical domestic appliances perform one or other of the above duties, and their success in doing so is a measure of the enterprise of those responsible for their development. The big housing programmes following the last war were fields for electrical development which industry turned to good advantage. Much experience was gained as a result?and it must be remembered that the real test of any apparatus is its performance in the hands of the user?so that just prior to the present war ideas of electrical domestic service had begun to crystallize. Now necessarily in suspense, many improvements then ready for their final test under working conditions will, it is hoped, be released with the return of peace, while their production and efficiency will benefit from the knowledge of new materials and new manufacturing methods which has accrued during the war. In this paper the authors consider some of the improvements which may - be expected and which would be most welcome. It is divided into the five sections of cooking, refrigeration, heating, hot water, and cleaning.
