(Ms.) Dene Cousins, RCM Senior Property Manager FirstService Residential
Making a List, Checking it Twice
Winterizing Condos: A Manager’s Checklist The Fall Season Brings an Entire New Set of Chores and Challenges for all Property Managers
if you’re a seasoned manager, you likely have most of your fall chores done… but here’s a checklist just to be sure you’ve got it covered and can safely book that week at the time-share in Boca… Where to start with the checklist? Changeover from Cooling to heating – the Great Debate Dear Condo Guru: It happens every fall and spring ... The people on the sunny side of my building are too hot... the people on the shady side are too cold...
Everyone thinks I’m doing this on purpose... please send help... I’d love to change their life with the flick of a switch but there’s a little more to it than that! Picking the dates seems to get more difficult every year. Climate change is happening, creating unpredictable swings in temperature from one day to the next. Historical change-over dates are not necessarily relevant. The scientific approach is to rely on weather forecasts and set the dates based on average low nighttime temperatures. But this year that was an up and down number for weeks. Some buildings even survey residents for their opinions. My advice is to take a personal approach with a survey that includes owners in suites in key locations (sunny side, shady side, on the top, mid and low floors), consult the HVAC contractor for each building, suggest dates to your board and announce it to owners and residents. And be polite
when you respond to those nasty emails. Now – the site itself. I have included suggestions for both multi-storey and townhouse properties. Let’s take it from the top. Roof top mechanical installations: Confirm that the contractor has properly shut down the chiller and drained it and/ or the cooling tower…and inspected the make- up air unit and mechanical bunkhouse structure for deterioration of the exterior or the caulking at the base. The Roof(s): Depending on the age of the roof and your location, there are probably vulnerable areas. Have a contractor check the surface for cracks in the membrane for flat roofs… caulking around the roof vents and skylights… plants taking hold as a result of seeds landing on the roof CONDOVOICE WINTER 2021
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ILLUSTRATION BY TOMIO NITTO
So… here you are finally breathing a sigh of relief. All the summer chores are done – window washing, garage cleaning, landscape upgrades, painting, roofs, eaves, caulking –YES!... all those labour intensive outside repairs done and dusted for another year… and NOW the fall season brings an entire new set of chores and challenges for all property managers…
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2021-12-17 8:17 PM
