Welcome to the TLM Property Maintenance Blog page.

Water Supply

The pipe connecting your home to the incoming  water mains supply pipe is the owner’s responsibility until it joins the stop-tap located in the road or footpath outside your property.

Modern homes are connected with a plastic pipe which is normally in a duct and will not rust.

Older properties are connected via a metal pipe which will eventually corrode.

There is no practical way of checking if your communicating pipe is faulty. The pipe is buried underground normally at least 750 mm below ground level.

If your water pressure drops or you find discolouration occurring at the kitchen sink cold water tap, or a continual noise; the pipe may be showing signs of corrosion.

Plumbing Services

If you have a gas central heating system, it should be regularly serviced to maintain it properly and prolong the life of the system. It is worth considering an annual maintenance contract with an approved contractor.

Locate your overflow pipes. Check to make sure the overflows from the w.c. And cold water tanks are clear and have not become obstructed.

If water continuously drips or overflows from an overflow pipe, it is warning that the system is faulty and needs to be checked, adjusted or repaired.

Repair any leaking taps. Continuously dripping taps waste water and will cause long term damage if left un-repaired.

Look in the roof space and make sure there are no un-lagged pipes which could freeze and burst in cold weather, keep insulation away from under tank to ensure these do not freeze.

Locate your main stop-tap. Check it is not corroded or seized.

If a burst does occur in cold weather, you will need to turn this off quickly.

Make sure you also turn off your hot water system before obtaining professional help.

We are here to help! Call today on; 02392 389115

The electrical installation in your home may need to be checked to ensure it is safe and adequately earthed.

This cannot normally be carried out by the average householder and you should seek the advice of a qualified electrician. We are able help call 02392 389115.

However, there are several things that you should be aware of that can help you with the decision on paying for a proper electrical inspection and report.

Was your house rewired (or originally constructed) more than 25 years ago?

Look at your light switches and sockets. Are the light switches the older style - round surface mounted type?

Do you have any round pin plug sockets? If so, these are indications that your electrical installation needs to be replaced.

Look at the light flexes dropping from the ceiling roses to the lighting points throughout your home. Are they twisted flexes. Are any of the fittings obviously discoloured or brittle? Can you see any exposed or frayed wires?

Electrical Services

Make sure you know where the consumer unit (fuse board) is located and how to change the fuse if one should fail.

Always keep some spare properly rated fuse wire or replacement fuse cartridges to suit your particular type of fuse board.

Keep a torch handy.

Keep the name and telephone number of a qualified electrician nearby so that you have a contact in case of emergency.

Gas Installation

As with electrical services in your home, professional advice should be obtained. All gas servicing must be carried out by a registered and approved contractor (e.g. Corgi/ Gas Safe Registered). We can help! Call 02392 389115

Anyone handling gas service installations must comply with the current Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations.

If you suspect a gas leak or blocked flues to a gas fire or back boiler, contact your local gas installer immediately.

Leaking, blocked and misaligned rainwater goods are relatively easy to maintain but if allowed to fall into disrepair, the resultant damp penetration in the structure can cause immense damage to roof timbers, floor joists and internal plasterwork.

Hopper Heads, Valleys and Parapet Gutters

Valleys and parapet gutters collect surface water from the roof. They cannot be easily seen from ground level. This type of feature is frequently found in properties constructed in the 1800‘s.

Seagulls and pigeons can nest and block gutters which can allow damp to penetrate into the roof timbers.

Regular checks in the spring and autumn to clear the valleys, parapets and hopper heads will help the surface water system to operate properly.

Obtaining Further Advice

Don’t take chances....seek professional guidance if you are in any doubt as to how to resolve your problems, we are able to offer a service for this type of work 02392 389115.

Gutters and Down Pipes

Look closely at the gutters and down pipes. Are they aligned correctly?

Are there leaks to be seen from the joints? Look for staining on the wall.

Check the ground below the gutters. Are there areas where the soil has been washed away?

Check the gutters when it is raining. Does water flood over the top of the gutters?

Do the down pipes work or can you see water leaking from the down pipes before it is discharged belowground?

Are all the brackets and stop-ends in place and adequately supporting the gutters?

Look inside the gutters if you can, are they free from dirt, leaves and mould?

The gutters need to be cleaned out regularly to ensure they work properly.

Check hopper heads and waste pipes generally for any signs of leaks or blockages. Are there stains or damp patches on the walls, indicating blocked pipes?

External Inspection Roof

(Binoculars will help you see the roof and chimney in more detail).

Inspect from the ground. Look for slipped or lifted slates or tiles.

Inspect carefully around chimneys where they join with the roof.

Look for lifted, cracked or loose flashings and cement mortar fillets.

Check for cracks or gaps where the roof joins with an abutment to a wall or another roof.

Check ridge and hip tiles. Are there any gaps or open joints between the tiles?

Check inside your loft space. Inspect your roof from the underside. Look for damp stains on the roof timbers - particularly below or at the bottom of valleys (where two roof slopes meet).

Check for leaks on the ceilings in the bedrooms.

If you know you have a leak but have difficulty locating it - inspect the loft when it is raining to pinpoint where the leak is coming from.

Chimneys

Look for loose chimney pots. Check for cracks in the brickwork or rendering to the chimney.

Look alongside the chimney from ground level - is it leaning at all? Look closely at the top of the chimney - do the bricks look disturbed or loose.

If your fireplaces are not used - are the pots capped over? If so, has suitable ventilation been provided to keep the flues aired?

If the pots are not capped, consider doing this to stop rain falling down the chimney, but remember the flues need to be ventilated.

Look inside the loft space. Is the brickwork below the chimney damp, loose or powdery.

If your chimney is shared with next door’s property. Have a brief look at your neighbour’s chimney and discuss any common problems with the adjacent owner, who may have a joint responsibility for repairing the chimney.

External walls

If walls are rendered – look for areas which seem to be perished or uneven.

Gently tap the rendering, does it seem hollow or un-keyed/ live?

Perished and cracked render will allow rain and frost penetration into the structure.

Are there cracks to the walls?

Identify where these areas are, look inside to see if the plastered walls look or feel damp.

Do any cracks go right through the wall to correspond with cracks internally?

If so do they exceed 6mm?

If the property is not terraced, stand at the bottom of an outside wall and look upwards, does the wall appear to be upright or can you see any distortion or bulging in the wall?

If your home has cavity walls, have a look at the external walls carefully to see if you can see any signs of horizontal or vertical cracking between brickwork.

Have any parts of the walls ‘unzipped’ the brickwork, causing a zigzag of open joints?

Check around the window and door openings, do any areas appear distorted or cracked?

Check brick arches to make sure there are no loose, disturbed or missing bricks.

Check carefully where windows and door frames meet the brickwork, (especially applicable to stone bays).

Are there any gaps where damp or water penetration can occur?

If walls are not rendered, check the condition of the pointing.

Does it appear eroded, loose or perished?

Check the condition of the bricks themselves; are they soft, scarified or perished?

Carrying Out A Survey

The older your property, the greater the likelihood that parts of your home are wearing out.

Whilst very few properties are likely to be in a dangerous state, it is worth you considering how best to maintain your home as a valuable asset.

The best way to find out what problems your property may have is to arrange a full professional survey of your home, we can assist in this service, give us a call today 02392 389115.

Should you be over 60 years of age or disabled, then a specialist advisory service is available – The Anchor Housing Trust ‘Staying Put Scheme’. Initial advice under the scheme is free and they can be contacted through your Local Authority or directly for further information.

However, the advice contained in these blogs are intended to help you identify some of the more frequently occurring defects in your home.

We hope this will be helpful but, as you will be the user of this information, you should satisfy yourself on the relevance of the advice contained.

The information is based on authoritative advice but we shall be under no liability for the contents of the information and advice contained here, or the use to which the user will put this information.

Come back later in the week, we will be discussing Brickwork and Structural components.

The majority of major defects which can arise in your home, result from the failure of one or more of the components to your property.

More often than not, this will be on the exterior of your home, which you may not regularly look at to identify problems as they occur.

Regular inspection of your home and the carrying out of routine repairs at an early stage will prolong the life of your property and enable you to live more comfortably in your home.

If you plan your maintenance and budget for regular expenditure, this will enable you to spread the costs of repairs and reduce the risk of major expense when a problem occurs.

Here at TLM, we have produced a number of articles that we will share with our customers over the next few weeks on our blog. The aim is to provide free advice to homeowners on some of the more important aspects of good home maintenance.

Owning a home is normally the biggest financial investment we make.

Our houses need to be regularly maintained to keep them in good repair to enable the building to perform safely and adequately, to give many years of comfortable living and use.

Prioritising the maintenance requirements of our homes needs to be regularly assessed.

In this series of articles, we will present hints and tips which we hope will assist homeowners when they consider routine maintenance and planning for essential works.

There is also advice on some of the less routine faults which can occur in an older property.

Here at TLM, we like to look after our customers and help them out with useful tips, information and articles that we think will be useful.

We thought the easiest way of doing that was to add a blog page to our web site where you can check regularly - so here it is !

Why not bookmark this page in your browser so you can find it easily again. Don't forget to tell your friends and family about our web site too !

We are always keen to help so if you have any questions, drop us an email and we will see how we can help.

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