September is here and although the days are still warm and long, Winter is quickly approaching, bringing with it many risks for building owners. Ice, snow and freezing temperatures once again threaten the safety of commercial and residential buildings. The last thing you need as a building owner is a collapsed roof, water damage from burst pipes, or a severe fall on your walkway.
Our winter maintenance checklist can help get your building on track for a safe and successful winter season. Learn some steps you can take and download our free checklist.
Why Should You Audit Your Commercial Building for Winter?
Each year there are many stories about commercial buildings suffering from the consequences of winter weather. Slips, trips, falls, burst pipes and collapsed roofs dominate the news cycle from October to April across the northern hemisphere.
Understanding the risks at your building can help you prepare and prevent winter related issues, and this goes beyond just checking your roof and insulation.
The winter experts at nVent RAYCHEM have compiled a winter maintenance checklist to help you get started. Let’s look at some of the suggestions.
Winter Maintenance Checklist Items for Commercial Buildings
- Ensure Electrical Integrity of All Heat Trace Circuits: Performing insulation resistance testing on your current circuits can expose creeping problems. While performing these checks, ensure you are following the product specifications as detailed in installation manuals.
- Perform an Insulation Check: Missing or wet insulation can pose a big problem for building owners when freeze sets in, and in some cases can render heat tracing systems ineffective when you need them most. Visually inspect all insulation in your building, checking for continuing. If you are utilizing cladding, that should also be inspected.
- Check Your Heat Trace System: It’s important to inspect your heat trace system components – including thermostats and controllers. Check for corrosion or any loose electrical connections. Review the settings of your thermostats to ensure they are set for colder weather.
- Perform a Power Check: Validate the power output of your system by performing a power check. Refer to your product installation manuals to ensure you are running the correct procedures for your system.
- Stock Extra Cable and Parts: You never know what winter may bring, so it’s essential to have a backup plan. Having extra stock on site will allow you to make quick repairs in case of an emergency.
No one thinks that winter weather will affect their building, but according to the Insurance Information Institute winter storms caused up to $1 billion dollars in damage during the winter of 2016. Don’t let your building become a statistic.
To get these items, and more, in a downloadable checklist – click the link below.
And if you are looking for more help this winter with your building audit, contact a nVent RAYCHEM Winter Expert today. We are standing by and ready to assist.