Icehouses looked like barns. Inside,the ice blocks were carefully stackedand stored. Straw or sawdust was spreadover and around each one to keep theice from melting and sticking to otherice blocks.
Throughout the year, ice was takenfrom the icehouse. Horse-drawn truckscarried blocks of it to towns and cities.Children loved to see the ice truck on hotsummer days. They ran after it until itstopped. Canvas flaps on the truck keptthe ice shaded and cool. The childrenstayed close when the iceman pushed aflap aside. How good the cold air felt!
The iceman wore leather shoulderpads and a leather apron. These kepthim from getting wet and cold. He usedice tongs to grab the blocks, and hecarried the ice on his shoulder. The iceblocks might weigh from 11 to 22kilograms (25 to 50 pounds) each.
The iceman chipped at the blockwith an ice pick. The ice was cut andshaped to fit inside an icebox. Theicebox was the place where the ice keptfood cool. Most homes had an icebox.Children gathered around to watch the iceman do his work. There was sure tobe a sliver of ice for each of them. Whata treat on a steamy day!
INVESTIGATION2
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Why Pipes BurstPipes supply water to houses,schools, and other buildings. Theymay be made of plastic, copper,cast iron, steel, or other materials.They’re made to be strong, butsometimes pipes burst! Do youknow why?
Most things contract, or growsmaller, when they get cold. Watershrinks as it cools, too. But whenwater gets down to 4°C (39°F), itstarts to expand. The colder it gets,the more it expands, until it freezes.That means ice takes up morespace than liquid water does. Iceneeds room to expand, or it willbreak its container.
In places where temperatures dropbelow freezing, care must be takento keep water from freezing inpipes. Pipes should be wrappedwith insulation. Heating systemscan keep areas with pipes warm.Sometimes unused water pipescan be drained of water before thecold season begins.
A Soggy MassWater played an important role indeveloping the metric system. Itwas used to set the standard forthe gram. The gram is the metricunit of mass. The gram is equal to1 cubic centimeter of pure water at4°C. At that temperature, water isdensest. That means its moleculesare most tightly packed.
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