Multifamily property managers and owners must plan and take precautions before the cold winter season arrives.
Winters can bring below-freezing temperatures that can cause all kinds of problems on your multifamily property, such as cold tenants, frozen pipes, malfunctioning HVAC systems, poor insulation, and clogged gutters. All these things can lead to unhappy tenants and property damage unless you know how to prepare for every potential problem that can occur.
Don’t wait until winter arrives to get your multifamily property ready for freezing temperatures. Begin your winter preparations in early fall to ensure you have ample time to address any concerns. For expert assistance in getting your property winter-ready, contact Peak Renovations today!
Below are the top three ways you should prepare your multifamily property for the winter weather.
1) Update Your Emergency Contact Lists
Put together the management teams that will be on standby to address the needs of tenants during the winter if something bad happens. Review and update all your contact lists to ensure you can reach your tenants and property managers quickly. Having quick lines of communication is essential during the winter.
You should also gather your emergency utility shut-off maps and keep them in the manager’s office. These maps will help guide managers in how to shut off power and water utilities if needed under certain circumstances.
For instance, shutting off the power after an outage can help prevent damage to the electrical systems once the power comes back on.
Shut Off the Water to Prevent Frozen Pipes
2) Shut Off the Water to Prevent Frozen Pipes
The freezing winter cold can easily freeze the water pipes of your multifamily property’s plumbing system. Do everything possible to prevent this from happening to avoid water damage restoration. Contact your tenants and find out which ones are leaving for the winter. Tell those tenants to close their windows before leaving to prevent cold air from getting inside. The next thing you need to do is to shut off the water to the units of the tenants that have left. If there is no water in the pipes, then the water won’t freeze and cause the pipes to burst. But if there is water in the pipes and no heat in the unit due to a power outage, then it will most certainly cause the pipes to burst after they freeze. The tenants who are staying in their units during the winter should still have access to their water.
Regardless, make sure you inform them to keep their thermostats above 55°F to ensure there is enough heat in the unit to prevent the pipes from freezing. The heat should always remain on, whether they are leaving or not.
3) Inspect Your HVAC Systems and Turn on the Heat
It is critical to have fully functional HVAC systems in the winter because they will need to generate heat for your units. You should switch your HVAC systems from air conditioning to heat as soon as the outdoor temperatures drop.
Have Peak Renovations inspect your HVAC systems before the winter arrives to ensure they are fully functional. Their team of experts can help you identify any issues and make sure your systems are running efficiently. It’s also a good idea to have Peak Renovations replace the air filters before switching the system from air conditioning to heat. Tenants can still use the thermostats in their units to control the heat, but be sure they keep it above 55°F.
Don’t wait until winter to prepare your multifamily property for freezing temperatures. Partner with Peak Renovations and start your winter planning as early as the beginning of fall to give yourself plenty of time to prepare for the season ahead.
