Ever come across news when the property owners or building management faces complaints on issues that happened to the building such as bursting of water pipes, leaking ceiling, poor glass-work as well as poor quality flooring material and so on. This can be possible if the main contractors and its subcontractors did not do a good job.

Other than finding a responsible building maintenance contractor, here are 7 things to check before you take over a building or unit?

#1 History of Faults

Check if there is any history record of fault especially when you are taking over an old building.  Always have a good record of the existing subcontractors, so that you can always give them a call when you require help.

#2 Maintenance Record

Check if the main contractor and its subcontractors have kept a record of maintenance checks. Check when is the last date of maintenance and how often do they carried out the maintenance. If there is any problem occurred after the handing over, and record shown there is maintenance. Perhaps, you might have to ask the contractor to re-visit the matter again properly.

#3 Check for signs of wear and tear

Look into areas where there can be frequent wear and tear, such as the piping, ceilings and walls. Find out whether the condition are still working or you may ask the existing owner or contractor to refurbish them again if you find it to be unsatisfactory.

#4 Walk through the flooring carefully to find if there is any “hollow” feel underneath the flooring. Such case is either the flooring is installed in a floating system with underlay or simply there may be termites underneath as well. In the best case, get the specialist to come to determine the condition of the flooring.

#5 Cables are working

Make sure that all the wiring are properly installed in a safe and certified manner. And all the switches are working for the lighting, electricity, the telephones and internet optical fibre system.

#6 Air-condition properly installed

Check if the air-conditioners of the building is working and properly zoned. Especially when it operates on a central command system. Do a thorough check on the air con piping to see if all are properly done up!

#7 Drainage Systems

Find out the drainage maintenance records, how often the building is check for efficient flow of drainage system. Whether the piping used, are of acceptable weight to the regular movement of your entire building drainage system, thus making sure that no waste is clogged in the drainage.

A thorough check of the building or even a single residential or commercial unit is important when you took over the site from your contractor. Most importantly, is to find a responsible contractor.