Like any aspect of your business, it’s important to maintain your plumbing. While it may seem like something you can set and forget, this unfortunately is not the case. An improperly or unmaintained plumbing system is more likely to deteriorate and cause issues or even plumbing emergencies that can significantly impact your business.
To avoid costly and disruptive issues down the track, it’s essential to be proactive. Today’s blog will explore the importance of routine plumbing maintenance for commercial properties and the benefits of staying proactive.
Commercial Plumbing Requirements
Just as cleaning is a requirement to ensure a safe, clean and hygienic environment for your employees and customers, so is maintaining your plumbing system. Commercial properties can have all kinds of plumbing fixtures from toilets, sinks, hot water systems and even gas appliances, all of which require regular maintenance to prevent issues.
Without regular maintenance, these fixtures and appliances can deteriorate, leading to blockages, burst pipes or gas leaks, which can be hazardous to staff and clients and require extensive and costly repairs to ensure your property meets safety standards. You may also need to close your business temporarily while completing repairs, cleaning up and passing safety inspections.
Commercial properties also have specific plumbing regulations that they must comply with in Victoria for safety reasons, such as annual testing of backflow prevention valves, thermostatic mixing valves (TMV), fire hydrants and all gas appliances. Skipping these annual inspections and tests can leave your business unprotected and at risk of causing damage or injuries. If this happens, you may also receive fines from your local government or be uninsured.
Benefits of Routine Plumbing Maintenance
Prevention of Major Plumbing Disasters
The biggest advantage of completing or scheduling regular plumbing maintenance is that you will be able to catch issues early and have them repaired before they turn into major plumbing disasters. Small leaks or clogs can quickly turn into burst pipes or sewage backups if ignored or handled incorrectly. So, while you may think it’s okay to ignore that drip in your hot water system or pipe or be patient with a slow-draining sink, you shouldn’t.
If a leak is caused by a crack, rust or damage it can eventually cause the pipe to burst and flood your business. Similarly, clogged drains can back up into your bathroom or kitchen sink and cause major health and safety issues.
However, by maintaining your plumbing system and checking it regularly you will catch these issues in their early stages so they can be repaired quickly and prevent costly and disruptive plumbing emergencies or disasters.
Cost Savings in the Long Run
While you may be apprehensive about spending money on routine maintenance, it is guaranteed to pay off in the long run. By maintaining your plumbing and preventing issues, you will avoid more expensive emergency repairs, cleaning, costly downtime or even financial penalties down the road.
Preventive maintenance can also help to extend the life of your plumbing system and fixtures so you won’t have to worry about replacing them for a long time. These savings can make all the difference for your business and budget.
Compliance with Health and Safety Regulations
When running a business one of the most important things is to ensure that your property is safe for your employees and customers. To ensure this, you must stay up-to-date and compliant with the relevant health and safety regulations for your industry.
This includes making sure that your backflow prevention valves are working to stop contamination of drinking water and that your thermostatic mixing valves are set at a safe temperature – 45 degrees Celcius – to prevent scalds or burns. Additionally, regular testing to ensure that your fire hydrants and fire hose reels are in the best possible condition is essential for safety in the event of a fire.
Regular testing and maintenance to comply with health and safety regulations ensure that your business is safe from plumbing or gas issues and that the wellbeing of your staff and customers are prioritised.
Improved Operational Efficiency
Finally, routine plumbing maintenance and inspections can help to keep your business operating efficiently. When plumbing issues strike it can cause disruptions to your business operations.
By scheduling regular inspections and maintenance during convenient downtimes you can prevent major issues from occurring and allow your business to continue running as normal and in line with all regulations.
Key Components of Routine Plumbing Maintenance
Routine plumbing maintenance should include inspecting, cleaning and repairing (where necessary) all aspects of your plumbing system. This includes:
- Cleaning and unblocking drains and toilets
- Hot water system inspections and maintenance
- Testing valves for leaks, pressure issues or malfunctions
- Checking pipes for leaks, damages, tree roots or blockages
- Testing gas appliances for malfunctions or leaks.
While you can complete the basic inspections yourself, it is beneficial to schedule routine maintenance with a qualified and insured commercial plumber at least annually to check for more complex issues and complete the required tests and repairs.
Protect Your Business with Professional Plumbing Maintenance
You should now be able to understand the importance of scheduling routine plumbing maintenance. It’s the best way to make sure that your commercial property is safe and compliant with your industry standards and regulations.
To protect your business from costly plumbing disasters and disruptions, schedule maintenance with our experienced commercial plumbers today. At Essendon Plumbing Services we have been helping commercial, industrial and retail businesses maintain their plumbing for over 33 years. We are also fully insured and licensed to complete all kinds of plumbing repairs.