Maintenance Hints & Tips

Sometimes things may go wrong in your property, and it is always best to be prepared. We've compiled some handy hints and tips in case you encounter issues with leaks, electricity outage, mould and damp or loss of heating.

Mould & Damp

It is important that you do all you can to stop the build-up of damp and mould in your home. We have listed some points below which we think will really help you take the steps to protect your home from unwanted damp and mould:

• Produce less moisture – cover pans when cooking, dry clothes outdoors where possible, keep doors closed to prevent the moisture escaping.
• Ventilate to remove moisture – ventilate all the time and especially when someone is in the property.
• Increase ventilation in the kitchen and bathroom.
• Heat your home a little more – if possible, keep low heat on all day, with background ventilation.

If you have a persistent problem, please also report the issue to us.

Water Leak

• If there is a leak within your property, try and turn your water off at the mains. Capture any water you can using a bucket and towels. This will help minimise further damage to the property.
• If the leak is coming from above, please contact your neighbour first. If the neighbour is not in the property, leave a note with your details and ask them to contact you. No plumber will be able to access the source of the leak until the person above grants access.
• If you are unable to make contact with your neighbour and the leak is significant and making your property unsafe, you can contact the fire brigade on 999. They will give you advice.

Please also report the issue to us. office@lewisfoylettings.co.uk

Loss of Electricity

If your electricity goes out, then the following tips could help you get the power back on:

• If you have a prepayment meter check you have not run out of credit or if there is a fault with the meter, then this must be reported to your electrical supplier.
• Check with your neighbours and the street lights, if they are impacted then it could be a localised power cut.
• You can check for power cuts in your area by calling the National Power Cut Helpline on 105.
• If it is not a local power cut, then the issue will be with your property. Check your fuse board first, has anything tripped? If so then try and turn your switches back on.
• Were you using an appliance when the power went out? Washing machines are the usual suspects. Turn any potentially faulty appliance off and try and turn the electricity back on at the fuse board.

If you are unable to find the faulty appliance easily then turn off all of your appliances at the plug socket. Turn your electricity back on, does it stay on? If so then this will point to a faulty appliance.

Start turning your appliances on one at a time. If one trips the electrics again then isolate this appliance. If this is an appliance that comes with the property, please report it to us.

If you are still experiencing issues after trying these tips, please report the issue to us: office@lewisfoylettings.co.uk

Loss of Heating

These tips may help you solve common heating problems:

• If there is an error code on your boiler, you can Google the code along with the boiler make/model and this can sometimes allow you to self-diagnose and resolve the issue.
• Resetting your boiler – Each boiler is different, but if there is a reset button on your boiler then press it. This can sometimes be enough to get the boiler working again.
• Turn your boiler off and then back on again. Similar to a reset this can sometimes restart a boiler and get it working again.
• If you have a room thermostat then please check this is turned on and turned up to the appropriate level. It would also be advisable to check if new batteries are required.
• If you have a prepayment meter check you have not run out of credit or if there is a fault with the meter then this must be reported to your gas supplier.
• Is a specific radiator not working? Your radiator may need to be bled and if you feel confident in doing so, please see instructions on how to do it from this short video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjyEkLwHtTc. If you feel like you need help with this then please report the issue to us.

If you are still experiencing issues after trying these tips, please report the issue to us: office@lewisfoylettings.co.uk

Waste Management

All waste produced at your property is your responsibility to dispose of, it must be disposed of in a responsible manner and every effort must be made to recycle where appropriate and possible.

Apartments – In an apartment, you may not have recycling facilities but there will be communal bin areas where you can safely and responsibly dispose of your waste. If recycling facilities are provided they will be clearly marked and should be used where possible an appropriate. Only dispose of your waste within the provided and designated containers and do not attempt to dispose of large items, these must be disposed of via an alternative method, some suggestions are listed below.

Houses under Liverpool City Council - Houses which fall within the area covered by Liverpool City Council are provided with wheelie bins, the following colours relate to the contents allowed to be disposed of within them:

• Purple = general household and non-recycleable waste.
• Blue = recycleable items such as glass, plastic, paper, metal and cardboard.
• Green = Garden waste such as grass cuttings and hedge cuttings.

Houses under Sefton Council - Houses which fall within the area covered by Liverpool City Council are provided with wheelie bins, the following colours relate to the contents allowed to be disposed of within them:

• Purple = general household and non-recycleable waste.
• Blue = recycleable items such as glass, plastic, paper, metal and cardboard.
• Green = Garden waste such as grass cuttings and hedge cuttings.

Houses under Wirral Council - Houses which fall within the area covered by Liverpool City Council are provided with wheelie bins, the following colours relate to the contents allowed to be disposed of within them:

• Marron = general household and non-recycleable waste.
• Grey = recycleable items such as glass, plastic, paper, metal and cardboard.
• Blue = Garden waste such as grass cuttings and hedge cuttings.

Large item disposal – large items must be disposed of by the owner in a responsible manner. There are several methods in which this can be done and below are a few possible suggestions for you to explore:

• Transport to the local recycling facility, the nearest location can be found on your local council website.
• Waste disposal service, many services are available online but it must be established that the removal service holds a waste carrier license.
• Bulky Bob’s; if you live within the Liverpool City Council area, this service can be free. For more information, please visit: https://liverpool.gov.uk/bins-and-recycling/bulky-item-collection/