Dear Maintenance Men:
Dear Maintenance Men:
My building gets hit by graffiti on a regular basis. How can I stop this curse.
Jim
Dear Jim:
We understand. Our company maintains several properties that attract graffiti like a magnet. There are several solutions that may help.
1. Painting over graffiti as quickly as possible will help deter future vandalism. We recommend painting over the same day or within 24 hours of the graffiti appearing on your property. Graffiti vandals like to advertise. The longer people that see their “Mark” the better. By removing the graffiti quickly, the less recognition the vandals will receive, thus making your building less attractive to graffiti taggers.
2. Install lighting in areas prone to graffiti. Motion activated lights also work well to deter vandals.
3. Planting vines or bushes along a wall or the side of the building is a good long-term solution. As the landscape grows, it will make it more difficult to graffiti your walls.
Dear Maintenance Men:
I own 12 units in Anaheim that are almost 40 years old. The building is plumbed with copper pipe. I have had several slab leaks already and fear I might get more. They always seem to happen at the worst times, such as at night or on the weekend when the plumber’s repair rates are at their most expensive. What can I do?
Dan
Dear Dan:
It is often a toss up as to which would be cheaper: re-piping the entire building or dealing with each slab or pipe leak as they happen. The cost of a weekend or after hours slab leak repair is about $800 to $1,200 or more per incident, not including, unit water damage. The cost of re-piping an entire building is approximately $1,200 to $1,500 per unit, not including wall or stucco repairs.
The pros and cons of the re-piping the entire building:
Pro: The cost of re-piping is a one time and predictable expense.
Your residents are disrupted only once.
Owner’s peace of mind concerning the building’s plumbing.
Con: The cost of re-piping a complete building.
Disrupting all your residents at one time.
There may be additional expenses associated with the work; such as: wall repair, stucco repair, painting etc.
The pros and cons of dealing with each slab or pipe leak as they happen.
Pro: Spreading out the cost of plumbing work over long a period of time.
Disrupting only one or two residents at a time.
Con: Unpredictable nature of slab or pipe leaks.
Unpredictable plumbing repair costs.
Upset residents
Wet carpets, furniture, etc.
Possible mold problems.
All residents without water while repairs are being made.
Possible hotel and resident disruption costs.
Chance of a future leak just beyond the repair of the current leak: High.
In the mean time, here are some preventive measures.
Dear Maintenance Men:
I have a small problem, no big deal, just irritating. I’m forever replacing towel bar racks. They seem to bend in the middle. Two many wet towels I guess. The bars are relatively inexpensive; it’s the time it takes to replace them. Any suggestions?
Dear Rick:
We have a simple solution for you. Insert a dowel rod inside the towel bar at the time of installation. This will give the bar much greater strength. If you still can’t sleep nights, pour Fix-All inside the bar and let it harden. Your residents should be able to swing from the towel bars now!
Bio:
Jerry L'Ecuyer is the owner of JLE Property Management & Buffalo Maintenance and is a licensed contractor & real estate broker. He is currently on the Board of Directors and Chairman of the Education Committee for the Apartment Association of Orange County. Jerry has been involved with apartments as a professional since 1988 and can be reached at (714) 778-0480. Frank Alvarez is the Operations Director for Buffalo Maintenance. He has been involved with apartment maintenance for over 14 years. Frank can be reached at (714) 956-8371 or visit the office at, 202 E. Broadway in Anaheim, CA 92805. Please visit our web site at: WWW.JLE1.COM