Maintaining Your Building's Laundry Facilities And Equipment
If you are responsible for managing an apartment building, your laundry facilities may be among the strongest selling points to potential tenants. However, apartment managers are often unable to care for their laundry equipment effectively. In addition to making disruptions for your tenants, these issues can also lead to expensive repairs and unnecessary equipment replacements.
Perform Water Quality Tests
The quality of the water that is flowing into the washing machines can have a major impact on their performance. Low-quality water will be less effective at cleaning soil and stains from clothing. It can also lead to performance problems as sediment, minerals, and other impurities can clog the interior of the washing machine. Performing a water quality test will allow you to determine whether there is a need to install water softening or filtration systems.
Keep Replacement Heating Elements For The Dryers
The dryers can experience some of the most intense use in your facilities as individuals may use these dryers to fluff their clothes, dry hand washed items or clothing that got soaked in the rain. In the event that one of the heating elements fail, your tenants may be unable to effectively dry their clothing. By keeping spare heating elements in storage, you can be sure that any problematic heating elements will be quickly replaced so that any disruptions can be quickly addressed.
Maintain The Vents For The Facility
Your laundry machines will need to have ventilation systems to allow exhaust from the dryers to vent. Otherwise, the laundry facility can become unbearable humid and hot. In addition to being uncomfortable, this can also be damaging as it may contribute to excessive amounts of condensation forming. Maintaining the vents for these systems will not be very difficult, but it will require you to regularly clean them to remove any lint, or other materials can accumulate in it. During the winter months, ice and snow accumulations can block the vents. Removing these substances after each snowfall or ice storm can ensure your dryers will have enough ventilation to work efficiently.
Have An Emergency Shut-Off For The Washers
You should design the laundry facility so that there is an emergency shutoff valve that can be used in the event that there is a major leak or other problem. Ideally, this valve should be positioned in an easy to access location, and it should be configured so that it will immediately turn off the water supply to the entire room. Furthermore, many of these valves can be configured to automatically alert the property manager so that they can investigate the situation.
Click here to read more on maintaining and choosing laundry equipment.