Architecture for the Elements and Uses: Heavy-Duty Chalets, Balconies, Recesses

The weight and blow of the snow can be difficult to imagine in the fall or summer months in Switzerland.  But the architecture is a reminder of the practical need to deflect the elements, hold up the tons, keep windows clear.  The size of the front overhang tells the story. See the supports needed to hold and protect that overhang from yet more weight. Read about the development of the architecture at ://www.mountainpassions.com/culture_environment/mountain_chalet.htm/.

The Workhorse Chalet, Switzerland

The balconies are useful for drying clothes, and even storing fruits and vegetables, says the Origins and Architecture site.  In the mountains, roofs can be timber planking combined with thatch and/or slates of limestone, or spruce tiles.

Seasoning over generations.

Long-seasoned (aged) wood, old spruce, with the tannin that darkens with age, would be held back and used for roofs only when the seasoning had made them strong enough. In some cases, wood would be stored for the roof use, at the lowest level where the firewood was, the big logs facing out, for generations before being put in place.
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 Chalet-balcony principles, town residence, Thun, Switzerland

Here are some interiors of classic chalets. See ://www.mountainpassions.com/living/chalet_abondance.htm/  There, see the wood stacked at the lowest level for fireplace use (accessible from inside), and the logs being seasoned, facing out.  The wood-stacking added a layer for insulation as well. Mosses and lichens stop up the drafts inside.