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AdamB · 25-09-2012, 09:01 PM

Hi all,

It never ceases to amaze me how homes can be (ab)used by tenants, so I was just wondering what tricks and tips you've found to minimise ongoing minor repairs?

As an example, after 1 year I am having to renew the door threshold strip on the way into the living room as it has come out of the door bar. So I'm looking to use strong contact adhesive under the leading edges of the carpet and gripfill and drill holes through to the concrete slab for a wide door threshold strip so that the edges of the carpet are completely concealed under the wide threshold strip! That should stop it coming out for a few weeks ;->

Let's not even go into the dreaded toilet seat discussion, I may just remove it altogether!!!

Any tips you've found to bullet-proof your fixtures and fittings?

Vanessa Warwick · 25-09-2012, 09:17 PM

What a great topic for discussion Adam. Thank you for starting it.

Flooring is an important part of the bullet proofing imho.

Tiling or vinyl in the kitchens and bathrooms, laminate in the hall and living area, and carpet in the bedrooms.

Intrigued what the toilet seat reference is to?! Smile

Good quality bathroom fittings, quality workmanship of such items as shelves and hooks etc. all help a property to survive the battering of tenants.

Regular maintenance checks and "little and often" repairs and maintenance stop small problems escalating and becoming big ones!

I don't subscribe to the "that'll do 'em" approach.

I try and go for mid price quality that is robust and can stand up to wear and tear.

AdamB · 25-09-2012, 09:24 PM

"little and often" - yes, I think that just about sums it up!

I guess little and often is better than "occasional and very costly" ;->

Cheers!

Vanessa Warwick · 25-09-2012, 09:47 PM

The mystery of the loo seat.

Are you going to keep me in suspense? Spill!!

Related discussion: Tenants say the funniest things

The vile-est things left behind by tenants

AdamB · 25-09-2012, 10:02 PM

There was a whole thread on here a while back about it - I'll let you do the search Big Grin

Michael Freer · 26-09-2012, 09:11 AM

This is a great thread Adam.

I have a piece of wood (painted the same colour as the walls) put above the windows to allow for where a tenant may want to hang their own curtains or blinds. Sure, when vacating, they are responsible for filling in holes they might have made but filled plaster never looks as good and makes it problematic (a significantly bigger hole than they planned) for a subsequent attempt by an new tenant who doesn’t appreciate there’s a filler/plaster mix…

One thing that I haven’t got a satisfactory answer to, yet, is Kitchen flooring? If you have a flat where hard flooring is forbidden under the lease then it seems you are forced to put cushion flooring (lino) in as carpet is eeeww. The tenant or a maintenance person then moves the washing machine or cooker and you end up with a rip as it has sunk into the flooring…

I leave bits of carpet (used upside down) for them to put said heavy items onto when they are being moved but these end up being forgotten in a cupboard somewhere. Has anybody tried installing waterproof hardboard underneath to stop the applicances “bedding” into the floor or do you use flooring types? Alternatively, some may see it as a good thing that it happens, as the place gets new flooring paid for by a tenant…?

Jayne Owen · 26-09-2012, 10:23 AM

Good thread Adam, some very interesting points. If anyone has an answer to the ever-ongoing question of black-mold-because-of-tenants-not-opening-windows, I'm all ears.

Recently on refurbishments we've been fitting shower cubicles in small bathrooms to replace the bath with shower over. Helps to prevent problematic shower screens, mouldy shower curtains and over-spill leaks around the edges of both.

Kitchen and bathrooms, where possible, we put down black tiles with plain white tiled walls. Doing this we've been able to buy in bulk, they're serviceable and easily replaceable. I take your point about the lino in leasehold flats though. Could it be worth getting hold of some heavy duty industrial kitchen flooring? It's tougher than domestic though not as pretty. Occasionally ends of rolls are sold on eBay at reasonable prices.

Ian · 26-09-2012, 12:35 PM

(26-09-2012 10:23 AM)Jayne Owen Wrote: If anyone has an answer to the ever-ongoing question of black-mold-because-of-tenants-not-opening-windows, I'm all ears.

Look at “positive input ventilation” and/or Extract Fan in kitchen/bathrooms that automatically increase speed when humidity rises. Envirovent is one of many venders. They can be wired in so that the tenant has to break a seal to turn them off, hence giving proof of where the blame is.

Michael Freer · 26-09-2012, 05:13 PM

There is a discussion about mould and condensation in this thread, that might be useful:

http://www.propertytribes.com/damp-in-pr...-6030.html

I particularly like Manc's post at the end regarding a document (available from his web site) he presents to tenants and ask them to sign a copy to confirm they've read it and understand that if black mould or condensation occur they will be held liable for repairs.

This approach is working for me as it is making tenants' think about this problem rather than simply moan when it occurs or leave you with a bill when they vacate.

AdamB · 26-09-2012, 06:10 PM

(26-09-2012 09:11 AM)michael_freer Wrote: One thing that I haven’t got a satisfactory answer to, yet, is Kitchen flooring? If you have a flat where hard flooring is forbidden under the lease then it seems you are forced to put cushion flooring (lino) in as carpet is eeeww. The tenant or a maintenance person then moves the washing machine or cooker and you end up with a rip as it has sunk into the flooring…

I leave bits of carpet (used upside down) for them to put said heavy items onto when they are being moved but these end up being forgotten in a cupboard somewhere. Has anybody tried installing waterproof hardboard underneath to stop the applicances “bedding” into the floor or do you use flooring types? Alternatively, some may see it as a good thing that it happens, as the place gets new flooring paid for by a tenant…?

I have a solution to this. I cut an old estate agents board that was lobbed in the back garden so that it fitted under the washing machine. Because its a heavy-duty corrugated plasticised board it slides nicely on the lino if you pull it out on each side. All I'd say is you need to be there to make sure the tenant doesn't scuff the lino, plus it is wipeable as well.

I did the same with the other side of the EA's board to go under the fridge freezer! Who says EAs have no use in the modern world?!

(26-09-2012 10:23 AM)Jayne Owen Wrote: Kitchen and bathrooms, where possible, we put down black tiles with plain white tiled walls. Doing this we've been able to buy in bulk, they're serviceable and easily replaceable. I take your point about the lino in leasehold flats though. Could it be worth getting hold of some heavy duty industrial kitchen flooring? It's tougher than domestic though not as pretty. Occasionally ends of rolls are sold on eBay at reasonable prices.

I saw in B&Q today some quite large pieces of lino (enough to do a bathroom) for £20 - not too bad?

Re bathrooms and kitchen tiles - I'll be using grey grout next time I re-tile as grey is closer to the black (mould) colour that is so en vogue with the tenants?!

Can't help with the lack of ventilation though, I think everybody finds it a problem. I have an extractor that comes on with the bathroom light but if it's light outside and the tenant doesn't switch on the light, the room doesn't get ventilated until they leave the door open Undecided

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