Keep your home safe this season by preparing your tenants to handle fire emergencies. With fresh foliage and dry fall air, it’s no surprise that fall coincides with wildfire season. Even if you’re not surrounded by a forest of trees, rising temperatures mean a mishap in your workshop, an exposed candle in your living room, or an appliance igniting could spell disaster for your home. That’s why it’s important to maintain your rental heating system and share knowledge about safe fire practices. Read this article along with our fire safety tips below during the fall season and protect your investments at the same time.
The importance of well-maintained heating systems in a rental
Improve tenant comfort
Create a pleasant indoor environment by ensuring your heating system is up to code. Autumn tends to be chaotic weather, with temperatures swinging wildly between summer heatwaves and impending winter freezes. As a result, being indoors with a dysfunctional heating system unable to maintain a consistent temperature can be a nightmare. So, if you want to increase your tenants’ chances of renewing their lease, make their stay as pleasant as possible by maintaining an efficient heating system.
Health and safety protection
Reduce the risk of fire by scheduling regular checks of your home’s heating system. Most American homes use a furnace to combat the cold, and a neglected furnace could allow natural gas, oil, or a spark to cause a fire. However, it is essential to remember that although a well-maintained heating system can reduce the risk of fire hazard, it does not eliminate it. It is still a good idea to hire a professional property management company in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania to remind tenants of fire safety drills in case of an emergency.
Enhancing energy efficiency
Spend less on your electric bill by improving your rental heating system. Frequent maintenance of your furnace, boiler, or heat pump can make it more efficient in dissipating heat throughout your home. In other words, the system will require less electricity to operate, which can reduce your energy consumption and save you more money in the long run. Aside from that, a well-maintained heating system that consumes less energy is also more environmentally friendly and can be a selling point for potential tenants.
Reduce repair costs
Minimize emergency repairs by scheduling frequent maintenance that nip minor problems in the bud. Another advantage of proactively dealing with your rental heating system is that it allows you to identify potential problems before they escalate into major, expensive problems that may occur. Neglecting your heating system for long periods of time can cause silent defects that eventually cause it to break down and require costly repairs or even complete replacement.
Educate tenants about fire safety practices
Common fire hazards
Keep fires away by educating your tenants about common hazards. Use this fire safety checklist to identify the causes of fires and prevent them. Aside from giving your tenants a verbal pep talk, you can also make the information stick by distributing visual aids or sending links to relevant YouTube videos.
Emergency action plans
Provide tenants with a detailed emergency plan on what to do in the event of a fire. Despite your best attempts to prevent a fire, sometimes it happens, and when it does, the last thing you want is to be unprepared. So, if you need to conduct trial fire training or do proper orientation to cover emergency evacuation routes, you should. It would also be best to have fire extinguishers and contact emergency services handy. Having an emergency action plan can save lives because tenants are more likely to be able to exit safely and can also act quickly to prevent further damage.
Drop regular reminders
Use newsletters, emails, and other forms of communication to drop fire safety reminders to tenants. It’s not enough to do one exercise or send out one post once every three years and hope for the best. You should continue to remind tenants of your current emergency procedure plans and update them when changes occur. Constant reminders can also go a long way in reinforcing fire safety habits that keep your rental safe.
conclusion
Keep your home safe from fires by making sure your tenants can handle emergencies when they rear their ugly heads. Aside from protecting your investment, it also improves your tenants’ safety from emergencies when you educate them about common fire hazards. You can start maintaining your home’s heating system to prevent malfunctions or problems that may disturb your tenants or endanger their safety and health. For landlords, performing regular maintenance can also boost your home’s energy efficiency, which in the long run can lead to lower utility bills and less spending on repairs.
