Château du Plessis

House Guide: Entry Hall

The Entry Hall welcomes visitors into the house. Note that it may be more convenient to come in through the kitchen door with direct access to the car port.

You enter the entry hall from the outside by unlocking the front French doors. From the inside. you can access it from the living room, from the dining room or from the tower staircase.

At the top of the three steps leading to the tower hallway there is a tiny powder room on the left, a hanging wardrobe to store coats and hats on the right, and the door leading to the wine cellar (sorry you will not find a collection of rare wines!)

• Light
• Doors, Curtains & Shutters
• Electrical Panel
• Powder Room
• Wardrobe
• Wine Cellar
• Safety

Lights

The following is a list of the switches locations as well as their purposes:
On the right of the front door: There are 6 switches as you enter from the outside :
- The top left switch turns on the outside lanterns in front of the house.
- The middle left switch is a dimmer operating the lantern in the hallway.
- The bottom left switch turns on the wall sconces.
- The top right switch turns on the 4 flood lights illuminating the house.
- The middle right switch turns on the 5 up flood lights illuminating the trees in the alley.
- The bottom right switch turns on the lanterns by the front gates (this is an override button; the lanterns are activated by a motion detector/timer).
On the left side of the Dining Room: The upper dimmer operates the lantern, the lower switch turns on the sconces.
Inside the Dining Room recess: This dimmer operates the chandelier in the dining room.
On the left of the opening to the tower: The upper switch turns on the lights in the staircase, the middle dimmer operates the lantern, and the lower switch turns on the sconces.
In the tower: At the bottom of the stairs the switch turns on the staircase lights.
Inside the powder room (watch your head): The switch on the right turns on both lights.
By the “cave”: The switch turns on the cave’s lights (make sure is OFF – the green light will be off - when no one is in the cave)
By the door in the tower: This switch turns on the outside lantern on top of the tower door. Make sure it is off during daytime hours, the green light on the switch will be off.

Note: We suggest that you use the flood lights or the alley lights for brief moments only. Besides using huge amounts of power (300 watts @ 220V per flood light), they can trigger the main breaker plunging the entire house into the dark. Should this incident happen, the main breaker, located in the “Gardien” kitchen, needs to be reset. If he is in, he will reset it before you get a chance to knock on his door. If he is out, try to get him on his cell phone (06 88 97 46 32). As there will be no power in the house, none of the cordless phones will be working. Only the phone in the Salon (Living Room) will be operational.

Doors, Curtains & Shutters

The front French doors open toward the inside. To open the doors, the shades must be rolled up first. To open and close the outside wooden shutters the doors must be open. Sounds confusing? Well it is, but you will rapidly get the hang of it. We recommend keeping the front door locked at all times. The door should be closed during rain falls. At night you can close the shutters, but it is not necessary (we never do).

Front Doors: The front French doors lock with three points. To lock the door, first lift the door handle and make sure that all three points are securely engaged. Then lock with the key.
Roll up shades: We would appreciate it if you roll down the shades during the morning hours to prevent the sun from heating the hallway and fading the fabrics. Note: Remember to roll up the shades above the door opening prior to opening the door or you might tear them when opening the door (not desirable!).
Drapes: To let the light in, open the curtains about halfway and gather the curtains behind the tie back.
Shutters: The shutters provide security and privacy. There is no need to close the shutters during your stay. However, you are welcome to do so if you wish and are ready to go through the necessary few steps. To close the shutters, first roll-up the shades and open the curtains. Then unlock and open the right hand door. Then a tall person needs to disengage the upper pin of the fixed door and the lower pin. The door will now swing open. To close the shutters, first push up the large sliding lock on each side. Then fold the shutters carefully so that they fit snugly inside the upper steel semi-circle. Then, pull into position so that the sliding locks fit easily into the locked position. You can now close the doors. First lock the fixed (left) side. Make sure the upper and lower pins are securely in. Then close the right hand side. Now, push tightly before raising the handle to make sure that the lower AND upper locks are firmly in. NOTE: The right hand door is slightly warped. As a result you need to put some pressure on the door at about eye level, for the upper pin to fit into its slot as you lift the handle. If it looks like it is not engaged, please try again. Then you can lock the door with the key. To open the shutters you simply reverse the procedure. Well, that was easy, was’t it?
Double Doors: The double doors to the dining room and the living room can be closed and locked from the room side only. They can only be pushed closed from the hallway side; there is no locking or closing device from this side.

Electrical Panel

The main electrical panel for the house is hidden behind a door behind the curtain on the left side of the front door. There is a push lock. To open the door, first push in and then pull open. The breakers are reasonably well labeled (in French). Should you trip a breaker simply call the Gardien if you have trouble locating the faulty breaker (there is a secondary panel on top of the door of the technical closet on the third floor.)
NOTE: The house main breaker is located in a small panel inside the kitchen of the gardien’s house.

Powder Room

The tiny powder room is in the tower at the top of the three steps. The WC is hidden under the throne! The TT supply fits snugly in a basket on the side. There is only cold water in the sink.

Wardrobe

There is a hanging wardrobe hidden behind the curtain. We have left our winter coats hanging there, and it is also used to store the vacuum cleaners. You should still find ample room to hang your rain gear et al. If it is cold during your stay, be sure to close the curtain securely to prevent the cold air from drifting in.

Wine Cellar

You are welcome to store the wine bottles you might buy in the wine cellar (or in the kitchen wine rack). Should you borrow any of our bottles, we will appreciate replacing them with the same bottles (see “Les Belles Caves” under Ballan-Miré). But be warned that many bottles were purchased from growers in Bordeaux and Burgundy with the intent of aging a few years.

Safety

Fire Extinguishers: There are three fire extinguishers inside. For convenience they are located on each floor in the tower, as close to the radiator as can be safely located. In case of fire dial 18 for the fire department.
You will also find a flashlight at the foot on each floor in the tower at the foot of the radiator. Additional pocket flashlights can usually be found in a nightstand drawer in each bedroom.

Smoke Alarms: There are smoke alarm detectors in each room and hallway.

We welcome your comments on how we can make it more comfortable or enjoyable. Feel free to comment on these instructions if anything is unclear or incomplete (or unnecessary for that matter).