# Dumbwaiters and incinerator chutes - do they still make them?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbwaiters-and-incinerator-chutes-do-they-still-make-them/502040>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [July 6, 2009, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbwaiters-and-incinerator-chutes-do-they-still-make-them/502040 "2009-07-06T01:36:04Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\
**Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbwaiters-and-incinerator-chutes-do-they-still-make-them/502040/21 "2009-07-07T20:29:07Z")

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The newspaper I used to work for had one. Of course, the building was about sixty years old. You’d ring a buzzer to let the other floor know it was coming, or if it was on your floor and they needed it they’d ring. When the lever that opened the door broke it was out of commission for several weeks as it was that hard to find a company to repair it.

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**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\
**Post date:** [July 7, 2009, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbwaiters-and-incinerator-chutes-do-they-still-make-them/502040/22 "2009-07-07T23:30:38Z")

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My dorm building had an active incinerator chute circa 1985.  
Eventually it became unok to use - I can’t remember if it became the recycleables chute or was closed down entirely.

Brian

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**Author:** ![Coalcracker0](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b38774/32.png) [@Coalcracker0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coalcracker0)\
**Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbwaiters-and-incinerator-chutes-do-they-still-make-them/502040/23 "2009-07-08T00:29:46Z")

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The apartment building I lived in, in the late 80’s (which was built in the early part of the century) had a dumbwaiter. The manager told me that dumbwaiters were used to deliver milk to each floor.

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**Author:** ![percypercy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8baadc/32.png) [@percypercy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/percypercy)\
**Post date:** [July 8, 2009, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dumbwaiters-and-incinerator-chutes-do-they-still-make-them/502040/24 "2009-07-08T01:17:49Z")

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In the house I grew up in, there was a laundry chute right next to one of the bedrooms. When we first moved in, we had a lot of fun throwing stuff in the hole and then running down the stairs(2 flights) to meet whatever junk we’d tossed down to the basement.

The chute got blocked when the kitchen was remodeled. The door would still open, so I’d periodically pull it open and ponder tossing something down. The idea of being punished always stopped me.

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