Category: Maintenance

Nothing lasts forever, and though you can’t predict the moment a piece of building equipment will break down, you can prepare for it. Even the toughest boiler, HVAC unit, or elevator will eventually tucker out and need major repairs, or ju…

How often should a multifamily apartment building in South Florida have its garbage chutes cleaned? That question depends on who lives in the building and how big it is, says Chet Ribner, president of Southern Chutes, Inc. in Hollywo…

 It's a common enough story: the condominium was relatively new, but from the  start its board of directors was stingy with maintenance and repair dollars.  Then the recession struck, and a large percentage of unpaid maintenance fees  spik…

 Land in Florida, especially South Florida, is comprised of loose, sandy soil,  and low water tables. That, plus the area’s proximity to the Gulf and Atlantic Ocean have always made it a difficult place  to build on. That’s why almost all …

 After the four walls of a given structure, the roof is sometimes referred to as  the “fifth plane”—and just like the walls that hold it up, the roof is an all-important structure  that can make or break a building’s performance. Florida’s…

 Few things are as important to our health and well-being as the air we breathe,  especially inside our own homes. That is why it is so important for individual  homeowners as well as management to stay up-to-date on issues of indoor air  …

 As we go about our busy lives, we often forget about the plain facts of life  here on this spinning globe: gravity creates an unceasing tension in the  materials we assemble into buildings and other structures. Whether or not we  are payi…

 If phones can be “smart,” why not buildings? With the ever-expanding array of consumer technology  available today, it should come as no surprise that residential buildings are  incorporating more and more cutting-edge technology into the…

 Southern Florida's homeowner associations may not have to deal with much in the  way of snow and ice when it comes to protecting and repairing their concrete  and stucco surfaces, but they certainly aren't off the hook just because  blizz…

 Warranties for products are simple to understand, most people might think. You  go to the store, buy a computer or a DVD player or a TV, or even a larger  appliance like a refrigerator, and you get a piece of paper describing a  one-year …