Doors

Doors are more than just there for people to go through.  They are a portal from one space to another.  Doors help facilitate security, separation of space, and comfort.  During different times of year, some aspects of doors' functions are handled differently, while other aspects of doors' functions remain the same...  To illustrate:

The door straight ahead is the interface between the laundry room and the "mud room".  While the laundry room is considered "conditioned" space, the mud room is only semi conditioned.  The temperature is only controlled in the mud room through passive and manual measures, while the laundry room is connected to conditioned spaces.  This door should be kept closed tight always, unless we are actively going through it.  To state this in another way, please shut this door behind you each and every time you go in or out, without fail! 

Also, we ask that everyone get into the habit of checking to make sure the latch really engages.  It needs to be really, really closed.  However, we don't lock this door.  

Another reason to keep this (and all exterior) door/s closed at virtually all times is to keep flies out!  

Other door things; please lock all exterior doors when you are leaving the house.  The exception is the back door (from the mud room to outside) during the daytime.  This is an IF/THEN scenario.  If no one else is present at the house, the door should be locked if you are leaving.  You do not want to lock a housemate out of the house if they are just in the garden!  The back door should be checked/locked nightly by everyone unless someone specifically takes this on as their domain. The front door should be locked always, with few exceptions.  If a massage client is expected to arrive within minutes, for example, I might unlock the door to facilitate their entry.

As for interior doors; this is another scenario altogether.  A Thing we are particularly attentive to is air flow.  There are lots of places where air flow is important.  One place is all interior doors.  For this reason, we find it particularly wonderful when housemates feel comfortable enough to leave the door to their private premises open (for any amount of time) to facilitate air flow.  The more, the better!  Locks are provided for security, and no one is to go into someone else's private premises without permission, but air flow keeps things from getting musty.   

Mold is prevalent in the Willamette Valley.  It is caused by the presence of moisture.  If you want to mitigate mold/mildew in this climate, you must keep air moving.  Heat also helps.  During the heating season, we make efforts to facilitate air, and preferably warm air, movement through spaces.  This house does not have a furnace, so unfortunately air is not pushed through each room.  Therefore, some effort is required; human input, as the system is not automated.  Any time you are comfortable leaving the door to your private space open, even an inch or two, it is appreciated.  Something to keep in mind...