The best buildings are often highly rated because of the effort involved in maintaining each of its components. Water is a basic need in every residential and commercial building, and having a constant supply of these elements counts for so much.
You may have noticed that damages to water systems often have adverse effects on buildings and their occupants. However, some people are not aware of these effects, thereby neglecting the building’s water system maintenance. Others choose to wait till the damage becomes adverse before looking for possible solutions.
This is not a good practice, and it is certainly not the right way to handle maintenance. In this article, you will learn the need to monitor and maintain water in buildings, the harmful effects of not maintaining water in buildings, and some methods for managing water in any structure.
Why Is It Important to Monitor Water in Buildings?
There are specific reasons for monitoring and maintaining water in buildings, highlighted by the harmful effects of not maintaining water in buildings. These effects are:
- Water-borne diseases: asides from air-borne diseases, the next highest means of disease transmission is by water. When the water system in a building is neglected, there is a tendency for microorganisms to develop in the pipes, drains, cooler systems, and other components of the water systems. Some of the microorganisms include legionella and bacteria. These organisms are known to be causes of severe diseases affecting the human populace. While some individuals have immune systems that can resist these organisms, some have weak immune systems, like babies, older adults, and people with health conditions.
- Leaks: there is this saying that a drop of water can lead to an ocean. Leaks from water systems in buildings are proof of this. Some building owners can choose to ignore leaks in water systems or not notice them because of a lack of supervision. These leaks affect the building’s fabric making the walls conducive to microorganisms that will destroy the building’s fabric. The worst-case scenario is the building collapses, and this is harmful to the ecosystem.
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Methods of Maintaining Water in Buildings
Specific methods have been designed to minimize the risks of not monitoring and maintaining water in buildings. These methods include:
- Establishing laws: in some states or countries, to curb the harmful effects of poor maintenance of water in buildings, laws are put in place that mandates building owners, healthcare centers, and factories to conduct maintenance checks on their water systems after stipulated periods.
- Observing regulations: the legislative body also sets rules and standards that building owners should follow, like the water temperature that passes through the pipes in a Building’s water system. The temperature is such that it is not conducive for microorganisms to grow.
- Conducting water treatment programs: this is meant to educate people on the risk of poor water maintenance in buildings. It also highlights tests conducted on water from water systems to determine if it is infected.
- Regular inspection and maintenance: this involves employing the services of a professional to check the pipes and other components of a building’s water system for leaks and, if present correct the problem before the leaks expand.
Conclusion
Regular inspection and maintenance of water in buildings have its benefits, and this article contains details. It also highlights the hazards involved when water in buildings is not monitored and maintained.
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