Commercial Property Maintenance- what you have to include in your checklist

Atol Gawande has famously started his writing career by publishing a book advocating the use of checklists to ensure quality and productivity.  The book, The Checklist Manifesto, uses examples from engineering, medical and business settings to illustrate using checklists effectively. Not surprisingly the author famously said that the volume and complexity of what we know has exceeded our individual ability to deliver its benefits correctly, safely, or reliably.

In our world of property maintenance, checklists and planning is key to keeping our clients’ properties safe and sound. We definitely learned a lesson or two from Mr. Gawande’s book and recommend it as a useful read on the serious side. This week we thought we will go with the checklist theme and set out our best tips on creating one for your property. This is written with a commercial property in mind but it can be applied to your own home if you so wish.

Building Inspections: Regular and systematic building inspections are a key part of any maintenance programme in order to help identify problems promptly. When carrying out these inspections, note the following:

• Early remedial action by a competent contractor is essential to prevent further damage.
• It may also be necessary to engage a competent person with the appropriate skills and equipment to carry out inspections in certain areas e.g. roofs.
• Log books are indispensable for keeping track of maintenance regimes, identified problems and actions taken.

External Building Fabric: The fabric of a building needs frequent and careful examination particularly when in an exposed or elevated location.

Roofs: Roofs need to be inspected at least twice a year or following particularly stormy weather – debris on the ground from broken slates and tiles indicates that there is a problem. In some cases roofs can be inspected using binoculars or vantage points from nearby higher buildings. If safe to do so, additional inspection through the loft access may show daylight or water penetration which is not always apparent from external inspection.

Following up on roof inspections regularly repair or replace:

• Missing, slipped or broken slates or tiles
• Damaged or rusty cladding
• Cracked flat roof coverings. A bitumen roofing felt may need to be completely renewed after 10 years.
• Leaking or damaged rooflights
• Damaged flashing
• Gaps and missing mortar between ridge tiles

Chimneys: Make sure these are cleaned twice yearly and repair or replace:

• Damaged flashing
• Damaged mortar

Lightning Conductors: Any lightning conductor systems need to be checked and maintained every 14/15 months by a suitably qualified and experienced person to ensure that they are undamaged, continue to conform to the relevant standards and provide the protection for which they were designed.

Walls: Walls need to be checked annually not only for damage but also for evidence of dampness which may highlight another problem such as rising damp or damaged/blocked gutters or downspouts. Note the following:

• Damaged/cracked bricks may be a sign of subsidence or settlement. Cracks may require monthly monitoring, particularly if diagonal. When in doubt seek specialist advice.
• Unless designed otherwise external ground levels should be at least 150mm or two bricks below internal floor levels so as not to affect any damp proofing.
• Climbing plants should be avoided or strictly controlled since they can hide problems, cause damage to the building fabric and block vents or gutters.

Following up on walls inspections clean, repair or replace:

• Air bricks
• Damaged or eroded mortar
• Damaged or rusty cladding

Rainwater Removal – Gutters, Gulleys, Downspouts, and Drains: Blocked or damaged rainwater removal systems will allow damage to the building fabric or water ingress. The underground drainage system also needs to effectively remove water away from the property and not become blocked with leaves, silt, vegetation or grease.

Drainage systems need to be checked regularly and cleaned at least annually – more regularly when necessary e.g. when close to trees. The best time to inspect is during or straight after heavy rain as this will enable you to more easily identify any problem areas.

Following up on drains inspections clean, repair or replace:

• Valley and parapet types requiring especially close and regular attention
• Internal downspouts, in particular, need to have adequate protection against mechanic damage and remain undamaged
• The fixings for downspouts and gutters
• Drains
• Also keep readily accessible
• Ground gutters, surface channels

External Joinery: An annual inspection of the condition of timberwork to be undertaken which, unless maintained, will deteriorate, rot and allow water ingress. Redecoration should be expected every 3 – 5 years depending on the location. Check for cracking, rot and peeling paintwork.

Following up on joinery inspections repair, renovate, replace as necessary:

• Doors, sills and frames. Also examine any putty, and look for missing sealants around the frame.
• Fascias, bargeboards etc
• Also examine any putty, and look for missing sealants around the frame.

We hope this has given you some ideas in terms of your property maintenance checklist. If you would our assistant in a maintenance survey and plan do get in touch.

Categorised in: Property maintenance, Property Management

This post was written by Express Property Services