Insulation Results in Fewer Problems

A new insulation system installed in Harvard dormitories over the summer has "helped reduce the number of freeze-ups" this winter, Thomas A. Tribble, manager of energy and building systems at Buildings and Grounds (B&G), said yesterday.

The insulation system enables heat to flow through all the rooms in a building instead of rising to the attic, he said. This results in a smaller amount of heat reaching pipes located in the attic, so B&G workers moved pipes more susceptible to the cold to more highly protected areas.

Maybe we didn't identify all of them, Tribble said, referring to the pipe that burst in South House's Eliot Hall January 13, causing damage to the rooms and property of several students.

Drainage

B&G workers drained the pipe, Tribble said, and moved it to an area "where it wouldn't the subjected to freezing."

Things are back to normal in Eliot Hall, Nancy L. Maull, South House senior tutor said yesterday. Students have moved back into their rooms, Which have been repainted and plastered.

"We haven't gotten any figures yet on the damage," Martha G. Coburn, associate dean of the College, said of the burst pipe incident yesterday. She added that the university has "no legal obligation" to reimburse students who lost property in the flood, but that she will peruse damage figures submitted to Maull by the students.

Good

The pipe was the "only broken pipe in the College all year," Coburn said. "We've had fewer incidents this year: we're delighted," she added.

House superintendents from nine Houses and the Yard said yesterday there have been no serious problems related to the cold weather this month. Many of them noted that they have been lucky.

"As far as the weather goes, the worst is over," Coburn said, adding that in terms of the number of students and rooms at Harvard, "we've had very few problems."