Category: Maintenance

As recently as the 1930’s, only 68 percent of American homes had electricity. By the middle of the last century however, most Americans enjoyed well-lit homes, and the light had started to spread outdoors as well. Initially, yards and g…

 The roof is the uppermost part of any residential building, serving as the first  line of defense against whatever the skies throw at its inhabitants. In many  New York co-op and condo buildings, the roof is also a social space, complete …

More often than not, when boards or associations broach the issue of their buildings “going green,” images of bamboo flooring, hemp drapes, or solar panels on the roof suddenly spring to mind. The impression seems to be that in a condo,…

 As a co-op or condominium board member, you rely on a long list of service  professionals for work ranging from HVAC maintenance to parking lot sealing.  Finding the right person for the right job, though, can be a challenge.    In…

Construction and renovation projects are necessary, but often troublesome—especially when they're occurring next door. For many residents and building owners adjacent to an ongoing project, noise, debris and construction zones diminish …

 No, your steam lines are not supposed to be noisy. The Beatles are considered to be among the best musicians of all time. But the cacophony you get from noisy steam lines is far from considered music at  all.    So what is causing …

 In today’s turbulent economic times as so many of us try to regain our financial footing,  the question of how to balance the bottom line and still take care of all that  needs to be done in a co-op and condo building remains a difficult …

 For building owners and managers in New York, winter weather not only refers to  the white stuff that falls out of the sky—but rather, the white stuff that collects in a building’s lobby.    That’s right—ice and snow can be a build…

The deep freeze of winter will fall on New York again very soon and most New Yorkers are hoping that we don't get pounded as badly by snow and ice this year as we did some years ago. Because of weather’s unpredictability during winter, …

In many ways, a building’s boiler is like the heart is to the body: it provides heat and circulation; it works unseen; and if properly maintained, it will function well for decades without a problem. Maintaining the heat source of the c…