A chute is a vertical or
inclined plane, channel, or passage through which objects are moved by means of
gravity.
Landform
A chute, also known as a race,
flume, cat, or river canyon, is a steep-sided passage through which water flows rapidly.
Akin to these, man-made chutes, such as the
timber slide and
log flume, were used in the
logging industry to facilitate the downstream transportation of timber along rivers. These are no longer in common use. Man-made chutes may also be a feature of
spillways on some
dams. Some types of water supply and irrigation systems are gravity fed, hence chutes. These include
aqueducts,
puquios, and
acequias.
Building chute
Chutes are in common use in tall buildings to allow the rapid transport of items from the upper floors to a central location on one of the lower floors, especially the
basement. Chutes may be round, square or rectangular at the top and/or the bottom.
Laundry chutes in
hotels are placed on each floor to allow the expedient transfer and collection of dirty laundry to the hotel's laundry facility without having to use
elevators or stairs. These chutes are generally aluminized steel and welded together to avoid any extruding parts that may rip or damage the materials.
Home laundry chutes are typically found in
homes with basement laundry to allow the collection of all household members' dirty laundry, conveniently near the bedrooms and laundry facilities, without the constant transport of laundry bins from story-to-story or room-to-room or up and down stairs. Home laundry chutes may be less common than previously due to building codes or concern regarding
fireblocking, the prevention of fire from spreading from floor-to-floor,[1] as well as child safety.[2][3] However, construction including cabinets, doors, lids, and
locks may make both risks significantly less than with simple
stairwells.
Refuse chutes or Garbage chutes are common in high-rise
apartment buildings and are used to collect all the building's garbage in one place. Often the bottom end of the chute is placed directly above a large, open
waste container, at times this also includes a mechanical
compactor. This makes
garbage collection faster and more efficient. It can however be a hygiene risk due to remainders of garbage in the chutes.
Escape chutes are used and proposed for use in evacuation of mining equipment and high-rise buildings.[4][5]
Construction chutes are used to remove
rubble and similar demolition materials safely from taller buildings. These temporary structures typically consist of a chain of cylindrical or conical plastic tubes, each fitted into the top of the one below and tied together, usually with
chains. Together they form a long flexible tube, which is hung down the side of the building. The lower end of this tube is placed over a
skip or other receptacle, and waste materials are dropped into the top. Heavy duty steel chutes may also be used when the debris being deposited is heavy duty and in cases of particularly high buildings.
An
elevator is not a chute as it does not move by gravity.
Home laundry chute
Garbage chute
Out of use trash incinerator chute
Mail chute
Construction chute
Circular garbage chute
Chutes in transportation
Goust, a hamlet in southwestern
France, is notable for its mountainside chute that is used to transport
coffins.[6][7]
A chute is a vertical or
inclined plane, channel, or passage through which objects are moved by means of
gravity.
Landform
A chute, also known as a race,
flume, cat, or river canyon, is a steep-sided passage through which water flows rapidly.
Akin to these, man-made chutes, such as the
timber slide and
log flume, were used in the
logging industry to facilitate the downstream transportation of timber along rivers. These are no longer in common use. Man-made chutes may also be a feature of
spillways on some
dams. Some types of water supply and irrigation systems are gravity fed, hence chutes. These include
aqueducts,
puquios, and
acequias.
Building chute
Chutes are in common use in tall buildings to allow the rapid transport of items from the upper floors to a central location on one of the lower floors, especially the
basement. Chutes may be round, square or rectangular at the top and/or the bottom.
Laundry chutes in
hotels are placed on each floor to allow the expedient transfer and collection of dirty laundry to the hotel's laundry facility without having to use
elevators or stairs. These chutes are generally aluminized steel and welded together to avoid any extruding parts that may rip or damage the materials.
Home laundry chutes are typically found in
homes with basement laundry to allow the collection of all household members' dirty laundry, conveniently near the bedrooms and laundry facilities, without the constant transport of laundry bins from story-to-story or room-to-room or up and down stairs. Home laundry chutes may be less common than previously due to building codes or concern regarding
fireblocking, the prevention of fire from spreading from floor-to-floor,[1] as well as child safety.[2][3] However, construction including cabinets, doors, lids, and
locks may make both risks significantly less than with simple
stairwells.
Refuse chutes or Garbage chutes are common in high-rise
apartment buildings and are used to collect all the building's garbage in one place. Often the bottom end of the chute is placed directly above a large, open
waste container, at times this also includes a mechanical
compactor. This makes
garbage collection faster and more efficient. It can however be a hygiene risk due to remainders of garbage in the chutes.
Escape chutes are used and proposed for use in evacuation of mining equipment and high-rise buildings.[4][5]
Construction chutes are used to remove
rubble and similar demolition materials safely from taller buildings. These temporary structures typically consist of a chain of cylindrical or conical plastic tubes, each fitted into the top of the one below and tied together, usually with
chains. Together they form a long flexible tube, which is hung down the side of the building. The lower end of this tube is placed over a
skip or other receptacle, and waste materials are dropped into the top. Heavy duty steel chutes may also be used when the debris being deposited is heavy duty and in cases of particularly high buildings.
An
elevator is not a chute as it does not move by gravity.
Home laundry chute
Garbage chute
Out of use trash incinerator chute
Mail chute
Construction chute
Circular garbage chute
Chutes in transportation
Goust, a hamlet in southwestern
France, is notable for its mountainside chute that is used to transport
coffins.[6][7]