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Filters, Batteries, and Water Heaters. Oh My!

Man Fixing a Water Heater in Moorhead Rental PropertyFall is actually a perfect time of the year to perform regular maintenance on some of the hardest-working devices in your rental property. Filters, batteries, and water heaters have to be fully checked and cleaned or replaced regularly to make sure your tenants are okay and your rental property is in a fine state. By getting the most out of the season to fulfill these important interior maintenance items, you can make sure that things are working safely and smoothly all winter long.

Few circumstances are more critical than changing your Moorhead rental property’s air filters regularly. These filters keep your property’s HVAC system clean and running efficiently. In this regard, changing the air filters in your rental property is an important part of seasonal maintenance. As the winter months draw near, longer time is spent inside of the home and furnaces start to work harder to keep out the cold. This makes maintaining your filters clean so much more vital. Based on which type of filter your HVAC system needs, you might need to change the filters as often as every 30 days, every three months, or even every six months. Allowing that you may perhaps think about pressing upon your tenant to do this obligation for you, the risks of your tenant failing or not changing the filters often enough are serious. This may absolutely strain on your HVAC system, cutting short the life and reducing the efficiency of the unit.

Fall is, moreover, the right time to test and change the batteries in your rental property’s smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. These devices are critical to maintaining your tenants’ safety; overlooking to ensure functioning smoke detectors in your rental property could cause you to get sued should your property become unexpectedly damaged or one of your tenants is hurt in a fire.

A bunch of smoke and carbon monoxide detectors will need their batteries changed every six to twelve months; others have lithium batteries that can last up to ten years, which is the useful life of a smoke or carbon monoxide detector. It makes no difference which kind of battery your devices have, you should never forget that the batteries are being tested and replaced on a regular basis. Hundreds of people are injured or killed in house fires every year, just cause the smoke detectors in their homes were not functioning sufficiently. If you pass this assignment off to your tenant, there is no assurance that they will perform it. They may moreover cause destruction to your property’s smoke detectors in the process of doing it, creating replacement expenses and increased liability.

Despite the fact of being classified among the most frequently used devices in a rental home, water heaters are commonly missed when making property maintenance tasks. Moreover, cleaning up your rental property’s water heater is an important part of keeping it running accurately. Over time, sediment builds up in the tank of a water heater, making it less efficient and even leading to clogged water lines.

These complications can be manageably suppressed by flushing your water heater once every six months or so. Even though this chore can really take time, it is a critical feature of taking full advantage as regards to your expensive water heater unit. Even if you think it is an excellent thought to ask your tenant to clean the water heater, you risk having a task that is unacceptably or inaccurately dealt with and eventually, a tenant may cause much bigger problems than they are able to iron out.

Neglecting these maintenance items can have serious consequences and result in expensive repairs in the future. Anyhow, insisting for your tenant to change or clean the filters, batteries, and water heater in your Moorhead rental property is not the best option. You could properly do the task yourself, but your best course of action is to authorize a company like Real Property Management Optimum to take care of all your property maintenance for you. Our full range of maintenance services will keep your tenants not only ok but safe and your property in excellent condition, keeping you free to focus on increasing your real estate investing business. Contact us today for more needed information.

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