[Greenbuilding] 500 Year Old Structure

[Chris Green]

Reuben Deumling wrote:
>
>
> On 8/20/07, *Chris Green* <pojeros at telus.net 
> <mailto:pojeros at telus.net>> wrote:
>
>     In Quebec city since the earliest days it has been city law that the
>     roofs have a built in ladder to make access to the chimney easier when
>     the inevitable chimney fire happened. 
>
>
> surely this was "to make [regular] access to the chimney easier [in 
> lieu of] the [thereby avoided] chimney fire" no? :-)
Yep. The ladders were built in place. Made regular cleaning of the 
chimneys easier, and allowed quick access to the building when the fires 
did happen. Brick chimneys in a region which does get to 40-below are 
prone to creosote build up. Creosote will catch on fire. They need to be 
cleaned in the late fall before the serious heating season starts. Not 
everyone is diligent about this maintenance.
Chimney fires sound like a jet taking off...It happened in one house I 
lived in when I was a kid, back in around 1956 or so. Still remember 
that....

Neat Here's a stock file photo by Gary Blakeley of exactly what I'm 
referring to, entitled Old Quebec Roofs.
http://www.istockphoto.com/file_closeup/?id=2265093&refnum=1046079 
<http://www.istockphoto.com/file_closeup/?id=2265093&refnum=1046079>

I suppose having a ladder also allows for access so one can remove the 
snow, too.

It's completely off the topic, but I have to share this discovery:
http://www.seniorsgotravel.com/images/new/contestoct06/Leeuw-0209old%20QuebecCityonline.jpg
Photo by Gerrit de Leeuw

*//*
Cheers,

Chris Green.