When it comes to running or working in an office, it is often the case that maintenance tasks whether that be emptying the coffee machine or taking out the bins are often overlooked and this is no different when it comes to drainage. From small sinks to more complex drainage systems, maintaining these drains in your office helps tremendously, saving money, time and potential frustration that can occur if your drains ever falter. This is why we have created the guide below so that both office owners and workers know how to keep these drains working safely and efficiently.
1. Understand Different Drainage Systems
Before getting into the various tips when it comes to drainage systems, it is imperative to know what drainage system you are looking at and the basics behind it. The most common office drains are:
Kitchen sinks:
One of the most common drainage systems, kitchen sinks are most used for cleaning up dishes and as such are prone to grease buildup from food leftovers.
Bathroom sinks and toilets:
Also incredibly common, due to being used frequently and the tendency for users to try and flush non-flushable items they are prone to blockages in their drainage systems.
Floor drains:
Found in maintenance or utility areas, they handle excess water and require periodic checks as the run-off that sometimes seeps into the drains can cause blockages.
Understanding what each drain is designed for and what issues they most commonly have ensures you can spot issues early and take appropriate action before they get worse.
2. Adopt Best Practices for Daily Use
Prevention is the best form of maintenance. So to help encourage your staff to help in the prevention effort these are some of the daily habits they can follow:
In the kitchen:
Keep cooking oils, grease or fatty substances away from the sink and instead put them in your non-recycling bin. These substances when put down a sink are the leading causes of blockages, solidifying and clogging your drainage.
Acquire a drain strainer that can be used to catch food particles before they have the chance to enter the drain and throw the particles into your non-recycling bin.
In bathrooms:
Have clear signs that remind staff to not flush anything non-flushable and stick to toilet paper. Emphasising not to put wet wipes, sanitary products or paper towels down the toilets. Also, office owners look at putting small bins next to each of the toilets to ensure there is a convenient place to dispose of non-flushables.
Make it known that excessive amounts of soap, especially bar soap, can solidify inside your drains and cause blockages so ensuring that an appropriate amount is used is necessary.
For floor drains:
Keep the surrounding area free from debris and avoid sweeping dirt or waste into them, disposing of the dirt or waste in more appropriate ways via a waste bin.
3. Schedule Regular Inspections
Even with the best daily habits, regular inspections are also essential. Consider these tasks to check your drains are problem-free:
Visual checks:
Look for slow-draining sinks, gurgling noises, or unpleasant odours in any of your drainage systems. These can indicate partial blockages. This is recommended to be done as often as possible but at a minimum once a month.
Quarterly professional checks:
Hire a qualified drainage expert to inspect your drainage system. They can spot hidden problems and provide deep cleaning if needed. Express Drainage Solutions offers some of the leading experts in inspections.
Test floor drains:
Pour a small amount of water into floor drains to ensure that the drains are clear of any blockages and are properly connected to the system.
4. Act Fast on Early Warning Signs
Often when small issues occur with your drainage, whether it is slightly slower to drain or a barely noticeable smell they are ignored as they aren’t ‘noticeable enough,’ or don’t ‘cause that big of an issue.’ This is dangerous thinking as while minor issues are not immediately dangerous, fixing them early can help save both time and stress that would come with sorting out minor issues that have grown into major ones. To keep on top of these minor issues here are some signs you should be watching out for:
Slow drainage:
The most common when it comes to minor issues, this occurs usually by minor blockages, which can usually be dealt with using a plunger or a drain cleaner.
Bad smells:
These may result from trapped debris, that combine to create a pungent smell. Pouring a mix of hot water and vinegar can help clear organic build-up, getting rid of the source of the smell.
Recurring blockages:
Persistent issues may signal a more significant problem, so this would require professional attention. If this is the case do get in touch with our team today who will help with more persistent issues.
5. Inform Your Team
With any task, it is considerably easier when done as a team, this is no different when it comes to spotting, flagging and dealing with potential drainage issues. To create this culture of consistently looking out and flagging potential drainage issues, training sessions or periodic reminders are vital for helping others understand what needs to be done and create habits. Making sure that the idea that small actions like correctly disposing of waste can make the biggest of differences.
6. Look into Professional Maintenance
Whether your office is big or small having a professional drainage expert come to do regular inspections and maintenance can help drastically improve the health of your drainage. While everyone in the office can spot potential issues there are still some they could miss and actions they cannot take, this is where a professional comes in. With deep-dive inspections via CCTV and services that include deeper cleaning of the drainage systems, professionals can help find and eradicate harder-to-find issues that could evolve into larger issues. To help with this our expert team is always available for office inspections and can be set up for regular inspections just get in touch with us today to schedule your inspection.
7. Prepare for Emergencies
Emergencies will always come up and even with the preventive measures put in place there is always a risk of issues occurring. So having a plan to deal with this scenario is key, to help with this here is a small list to follow:
- Have the contact information of a drainage expert on hand for emergency callouts
- Ensure you have the basic tools to hand and they are near where they would be needed, for example, plungers near the toilets.
- Memorise/write down where your office’s main water shut-off valve is just in case it needs to be turned off.
With all of these tips covered what are the main takeaways from this guide? The main one is that keeping your office drains issue-free is not as daunting as many may think it is. By following a few habits, having professionals do periodic checks and ensuring that issues are responded to quickly, your drainage systems will stay in top condition for easy to come. These simple steps save you money, time and stress with little effort.
If you are looking at setting up regular inspections for your office drains or have any issues with your drainage, do not hesitate to get in touch with our team of experts today who will help you with your drainage concerns.