About Xivovotri

Xivovotri is a reference site about planning outdoor decks and porches for cold Canadian climates. It gathers the structural and material details that change once a deck has to deal with snow, frost and repeated freeze-thaw cycles.

What the site covers

The content is organised around three areas: selecting decking materials suited to freezing conditions, understanding the snow and occupancy loads a deck is designed for, and detailing the ledger connection and footings so the structure stays durable through winter.

How the content is prepared

Articles draw on publicly available building-code material and published municipal deck guides. Reference values such as load minimums and footing depths are cited to their sources. Because requirements differ by municipality and are periodically updated, the notes point readers back to the original code and to their local building authority for the figures that apply to a specific project.

Scope and limits

This is general reference information, not engineering advice. It does not replace a design prepared by a licensed professional or the review of a local building official. Where a situation falls outside standard prescriptive solutions, such as a deck carrying a hot tub or built in a high-snow region, an engineered design is appropriate.