inresidence
Service frequencies differ depending on the age and the number of floors lifts serve but these frequencies are commonly on a four, six or 12 times a year basis. More visits are generally speaking always better for long-term reliability but are also heavily related to use. Regular, quality maintenance and parts replacement can help delay upgrades and modernisations. Here are some of the maintenance tips we look out for to increase a lift’s life. Visual Inspection: Our site team will visually inspect lifts regularly. They are looking for things such as bumps, scrapes, the level with the landing when its parked, jerky doors or flickering lights. Residents can also keep an eye out for these things and report to their development/property manager. Be kind to your doors: Almost 70% of lift breakdowns at FirstPort are door related. Propping the doors open for any extended period of time (over 30 seconds), pushing or forcing the doors back as they are closing can cause issues. If the lift senses that there’s something not quite right with a door, it won’t run for obvious safety reasons. Don’t overload your lift: It just won’t run for safety reasons. Cleaning: The car door tracks, hall door tracks and infra-red detectors need to be cleaned regularly. A clean, slightly damp, cloth can work wonders and prevent some of those door issues mentioned above. Cabin lighting: Our development manager can ensure with the service agent to make sure to replace non-working lights during regular checks. Usually, this part is not included in the contract, so we ask the service team for a replacement. Written record of any issues: It is recommended we maintain a written record of all the issues. You can then easily explain the problems when the service team comes for scheduled maintenance. If your lift breaks down, take a breath! Almost all lifts of any age will try to reset themselves in the event of something not working. If a lift doesn’t appear to be doing what you would expect, give it 10 minutes and then try to operate it before calling the lift company. One-in-four callouts are to lifts that have subsequently re-set and are now working fine. Share the 10-minute rule with your fellow residents, it may save, time, cost and frustration. While the maintenance crew will address issues such as worn out parts and lubrication, follow these tips and your lift will keep going up and down for years!
Make sure your lift doesn’t let you down
W hen you install a lift, the before it needs to be modernised or upgraded. Its lifespan depends on a number of factors including the frequency of use or journeys it undertakes, the quality of the original installation and of course maintenance over time. Some lifts can last well beyond this expectation is that it will have a lifespan of around 15 years lifecycle and, presently, the FirstPort record is a massive 36 years at the moment – a true veteran in the lift world. During the latter part of its life, the system is likely to have decreasing performance and increased service calls. This is why a diligent property manager will always ensure the annual service charge budget has sufficient funds to cover maintenance. It is also important that the reserve fund also has sufficient funds to cover a possible replacement that may be required after 15–20 years in service.
The day in the life of a lift There are many factors that influence the expected life of a lift. The three main ones are: • The original design and installation • How often it’s used • How well it’s maintained Keeping a lift healthy If a lift is not maintained regularly, its lifespan could decline drastically. In these circumstances such a unit might require modernising in less than a decade. When maintained well, a lift will generally only need to be modernised to meet the latest standards. Gavin McGarty explains how FirstPort keeps one of the UK’s largest lift portfolios on the move
Gavin McGarty, is technical manager for lift maintenance at FirstPort
13 ISSUE 106
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