Operation Manuals

With all new installations, whether they are mechanical, electrical or other, such as windows, doors etc., there are always operating instructions. You must ensure that the contractor hands these over to you and where necessary arranges a demonstration.

If you do not receive sufficient training in the operation of the installed equipment and as a result manage to break something through the application of force or by following the wrong procedure, you may invalidate any guarantees that apply.

All new equipment does take a little time to understand how it operates, particularly now that many systems are controlled digitally. Do not be afraid to ask for the time necessary for you to understand how the equipment works – remember that people who install such equipment work with it on a regular basis and may become complacent about other people’s lack of technical knowledge.

If you have arranged for the equipment to be supplied and have asked for it to be installed during the project, you may find that the electrical contractor for argument’s sake may not be as willing to spend the time to give you a demonstration. In fact, if it is equipment that he is not familiar with, he may not understand how it operates himself.

Always ensure that, if you buy equipment from a shop, you fully understand how to operate it. Shops will normally be happy to spend the time required, particularly if it secures a sale!

Maintenance Manuals

Again, maintenance manuals should accompany all new installations. It is vitally important that these are read and understood, as any guarantees may be affected if they are not complied with. Do ensure that if a certain piece of equipment requires periodic tests and inspections these are marked on your yearly calendar or in your personal diary.

Depending on the piece of equipment involved, there may be a requirement that it be maintained or tested by a particular company which is certified to carry out such work. This is something that needs special attention, as a person or company not certified by the manufacturers could invalidate the guarantee if maintenance is carried out wrongly, or if the maintenance manuals are not stamped with the appropriate certificated technician’s stamp.

Test Certificates

During the course of the works there are certain elements that require tests to be carried out and certified. It is advisable to ask the contractor for copies of such tests to add to your documents. These tests are normally associated with mechanical and electrical work. However, there are other inspections that the builder/contractor is obliged to inform the building control officer about, which we referred to in Chapter 1.

Guarantees

Many guarantees do not come into effect until such time as they are registered and this is one aspect that is regularly overlooked. You need to ensure that all manufacturers’ guarantees are handed over to you at the end of the project and sent off to the appropriate departments.

It is worth considering extending the guarantee period or taking out additional cover for equipment, as it canbe very costly to repair electrical or mechanical items. In fact, the cost of repair can sometimes be greater than buying a replacement.

Guarantees that should be handed over include:

• central heating equipment and plumbing fittings;
• electrical installation equipment and fittings;
• UPVC or aluminium windows and doors;
• appliances;
• specialist works, i.e. laminate flooring, kitchen unit fittings etc.;
• damp-proof injection;
• waterproof rendering;
• specialist flat roof systems;
• Velux windows;
• door furniture;
• data cabling equipment;
• specialist external paint systems;
• telephone/aerial equipment.

Monitoring Maintenance/Inspection Periods

In order to be able to monitor the inspection or maintenance periods of new installations at a glance, you could produce a sheet of the relevant information, have it laminated and attach it to a noticeboard or put it up somewhere where it will be on view. It is very easy to forget dates for inspections and maintenance periods, particularly if there are long gaps between them.

The fact that you could invalidate the guarantee by not adhering to them should give you the incentive to put into place a system to remind you of the specific dates.

As you can see from the example in Figure 8.1, it is very easy to produce such a chart, even by hand. You can also include a column for the telephone numbers of the appropriate people to contact.

General Inspection Procedures

In the column titled Inspection period, you will notice that some of the equipment has ‘General’ written in the cell. This is because you may not need to have a test or inspection that has to be recorded. It is advisable, however, to have a good look at certain areas periodically that may not be on view in everyday use.

With elements such as damp-proof injection, for example, it is worth checking behind units and inspecting wallpaper for signs of dampness as these can mask continuing problems. This can also be said for waterproof rendering and specialist external paint systems.

While laminate floor systems are desirable in bathrooms and kitchens, it is worth paying for good

Figure 8.1

Sample inspection/maintenance chart

quality. Pay good attention to the maintenance and cleaning procedures – many people do not use the correct cleaning agents and as a result find that water ingress causes problems that are not covered under the guarantee.