Shawn’s Tip Of The Week: Conduct freeze rounds whenever the temperature drops

As this year’s exceptionally cold weather continues to take its toll on many of our cities, engineers like you are the first line of defense tasked with keeping our buildings comfortable and safe. Freezing conditions can cause huge problems for any facility.

Creating a documented freeze rounds process is a great way to make sure that you avoid any cold-related disasters.

Every time the weather gets cold, you should conduct the following checks (and be sure to document it!)…

Verify that unit heaters are on and working in freeze prone areas, such as:

•      Stairwells
•      Mechanical rooms
•      Sprinklers
•      Standpipes
•      Any other place with exposed pipes

On top of that, make sure:

•      Heat tracers are working to things like cooling towers and water tanks
•      All outside doors are closed, especially in places that are less obvious like roofs, etc.
•      Outside dampers are closed
•      Outdoor water fountains are not freezing over
•      Icy/snowy walkways are properly shoveled and salted

As you can see, freeze rounds consist largely of things you’re probably already doing. But creating a process helps ensure that the right work gets done at the right time, AND it covers you in case something does go wrong and management looks to you. Protect your building and yourself, and do freeze rounds.

LogCheck is a great way to keep track of your freeze rounds and make sure that management gives you credit for the work that you do. If you’re interested in trying LogCheck for free, send an email to sales@logcheck.com, and tell them that you saw this blog!

Header image ‘Untitled’ by Alex, used via Creative Commons license.