Like any home, especially an older one, the Canal Place condos come with a number of systems (and quirks) that may or may not be familiar to a new owner. Since a comprehensive owner’s manual does not exist, these articles—written largely by one volunteer and added to by others —are offered here to share what other residents have learned. Knowledgable residents are invited to add to the information by way of the comments, or to suggest new topics to the web administrator. Questions welcome as well!

This is unofficial advice given neighbor to neighbor; accuracy is not guaranteed, and any work on a unit should be done by licensed professionals with proper permissions from the building management.*

• Building Access & Intercom
• Composting (for Trash & Recycling see Condo Living page)
• Electricity & Energy Efficiency
• Fire Alarm & Suppression System, CO2 Monitors, Flooring Fire-block
• Heating and Cooling
• Ideas for Utilizing Space
• Noise
• Smoke & Odors
• Water & Plumbing
• Windows & Window Sills

*Admin note about all these reminders regarding licenses and permissions and management: A couple of years before I moved here, some workmen in a unit on the sixth floor made an error in judgement. We all make errors in judgement, but theirs resulted in a fire. And the fire, aside from the damage it did to the unit itself and the tragedy it could have caused, resulted in significant water damage to several units below and to either side. And, aside from the upheaval and the personal property loss for all those affected residents, the costs to the insurance company made this building harder to insure and sent the premiums soaring. Which affects everyone’s condo fees.

So, as inconvenient as all the rules and regulations may seem sometimes just to make changes within your own unit, they’re there for a reason. And it’s a lot more “inconvenient” and expensive to take shortcuts and have something go wrong than it is to follow proper procedures in the first place. If you’re not sure of what those procedures are, always ask the management.