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Many air conditioner systems are heavily used during the beginning of the year and for good reason! January and February is the hottest period of time in Australia, with Sydney-siders experiencing soaring temperatures, dangerously high UV levels, and high humidity.

However, with high use comes needing more maintenance. Although many newer commercial buildings use ducted or central air conditioner systems that will need an HVAC professional to service, a lot of smaller or older structures have split air conditioner systems that can be cleaned and maintained by yourself.

Make sure that you can remain cool as a cucumber until the weather cools with a clean, smooth-running air conditioner system by following our handy guide below.

Cleaning The Outdoor Unit

If the outdoor unit, or the condenser unit, of your air conditioner is located on the ground or can be safely reached with a standard household ladder, then you can safely clean it yourself. Otherwise, if the outdoor unit is fitted high above the ground, we advise that you call an HVAC professional to get the job done.

For safety reasons, turn off the main power supply to the air conditioner before you start the cleaning process!

Step 1: Remove Dust from the Fins and Fan Blades

Because the condenser unit is located outside, the condenser fins can become caked with dust over time. This will restrict airflow, making it harder for your air-conditioner to cool your space down effectively.

To remove dust from the fins and the fan blades, unscrew and remove the outer panels of the unit. Some models may contain a separate covering over the fan blades. which will also need to be removed for a thorough clean.

Once the panel(s) have been removed, use a soft brush to gently knock dust off from the fins and the fan blades. Avoid using excess pressure as this may bend the fins.

Remove any debris collected at the bottom of the unit.

Step 2: Wash with a Water Hose

Using minimal water pressure to spray down the fins is the most effective way to clean them thoroughly. To do this, hold the water hose inside the unit and spray the fins to push the debris outward. If the fins are just dusty, plain water will be enough. If they are heavily soiled, a foam condenser cleaning product can remove grime efficiently.

To clean the fan blades, dampen a clean cloth and wipe them thoroughly.

Soak up and wipe dry any dirty water collected at the bottom of the unit.

Step 3: Dust off the Electrical Unit

There is wiring in the electrical unit of the condenser that must not be disconnected or tugged as it may cause a loose connection. There is also not much to clean inside the electrical unit as it is usually securely concealed within the condenser unit. The only cleaning it might need is to brush off any dust that might have collected on its surface. A soft brush, dusting cloth, or feather duster can get this job done safely and easily.

Step 4: Scrub Down the Panels

Cleaning the outdoor unit won’t be complete without scrubbing down the outside panels of the condenser unit. As these panels protect all the delicate inner parts of the unit, it sees a lot of dust, debris, and nasty stains.

First, brush off any dust or dirt. Next, hose them down and scrub away grime using some dishwashing detergent and a sponge, paying close attention to edges or ridges. For stubborn stains, soaking the stains with glass cleaner for 10 minutes usually does the trick!

Before screwing the panels back on, soak up excess water with a towel to allow the interior to dry up quickly.

Cleaning The Indoor Unit

When most people think about cleaning indoor air conditioner units, they usually only consider cleaning the filters. Even though keeping your filters clean is extremely important, there is more to be done when it comes to maintaining the overall functioning of your indoor unit.

Step 1: Remove and Clean Air Filters

To remove the air filters and clean inside the unit, take off the front panel or open it by lifting it up (depending on the model). Once the filters have been removed, clean the filters with a vacuum cleaner or gently clean them under running water. Be sure to clean both sides of the filters thoroughly.

Step 2: Clean Off the Evaporator Coils

There are plenty of commercial products on the market to help you clean the air conditioner’s evaporator coils quickly and efficiently. However, however, if yours aren’t too soiled, a mild solution of soap and water will be enough.

Begin by knocking off dust with a coil brush, then apply your homemade cleaning solution with a spray bottle, or the commercial product as per the label’s instructions. After a few minutes of sitting time, dampen a clean cloth to wipe the coils down. Make sure to get all the grime off!

Step 3: Clean Out the Drain Pipe

Sometimes blockages can occur in the drain tube, causing havoc to the functioning of the unit. To clear your unit’s drain tube, use a wet and dry vacuum cleaner to suck out any existing dirt and debris from the drain tube by placing the hose of the vacuum just inside the tube (or vice versa). Keep it running while holding the pipe firmly in place for about two minutes.

Step 4: Dust Out Remnants of Debris from Inside

Carefully dust the interior of your indoor unit with a feather duster. Any stubborn grime can be removed with a clean damp cloth. Finish it off by wiping the front panel and remaining exterior of the unit before putting the (now dry) filters back in and closing up your air-conditioner unit.

A computer is like air conditioner – it becomes useless when you open Windows.

Linus Torvalds

After you have cleaned your air conditioner’s indoor and outdoor units, it’s time to test it! Turn the main power supply back on, and keep your AC system on for a good half hour. In this time, observe the level of cooling, and check for unfamiliar smells and sounds. If you discover anything unusual, turn your AC off and contact a local HVAC technician to have it checked for any problems.

Regardless of if you decide to clean your air conditioner yourself or opt to call in a professional cleaner for the job, it is critically important to do this at least once a year. This will help keep your air conditioning systems in tiptop condition for years to come, keeping you cool and refreshed all summer long!

Summer is the ultimate time for outdoor parties and events, lazing about on the beach, and general relaxation and fun with friends and family over the holiday season. When all you want to do is go outside and enjoy the sunshine, it can get difficult to remember the summer property maintenance tasks even if they are essential to keeping your property in top shape.

Many households and commercial properties begin to overwork certain appliances, such as air-conditioners, dehumidifiers, or air purifiers, as the weather heats up. Harsh sunlight from the (in)famous Australian sun can also cause internal and external damage to properties.

Here are 6 essential summer maintenance tasks to add to your checklist as the new year begins and summer kicks into high gear.

Every moment is a fresh beginning.

T. S. Eliot

1. Service your air-conditioners

The feeling of walking into an air-conditioned space after being outside in summer is hard to beat. Cooling systems, from split-system air-conditioned houses to fully ducted central air conditioning in enormous shopping centres, are sure to be working overtime.

To ensure that your air cooling systems are working efficiently and smoothly, schedule a yearly (or more!) service by an accredited HVAC technician. They will clean and replace old or damaged air filters, clean the condenser coil, check the drainage system for leaks or damages, and other essential cleaning and maintenance that your HVAC system needs.

Having regular HVAC servicing as part of your summer property maintenance list has the added benefit of minimising the impact that your air-conditioner has on the environment. The more efficiently your cooling systems run, the less power and energy they will use, decreasing your carbon footprint whilst you, your staff, and your visitors stay cool and refreshed.

2. Clean out your air vents

Similarly to how important regular air-conditioner servicing is, cleaning our your air vents can also maximise your property’s cooling abilities. Dust and debris can seriously hinder airflow, which will result in hotter rooms and spaces. It can also greatly lower the quality of indoor air, leaving you and other people in the building at great risk of becoming ill.

Sometimes, not only will you find dust, but insects and vermin could also be using your air ducts to hide from the summer heat, which will definitely block your airflow and affect indoor air quality.

If you get squeamish at the thought of being surprised by hidden insects when you clean your airducts, consider calling a professional to do this extremely important summer property maintenance task.

3. Check all plumbing fixtures for damage and possible leaks

Prolonged sun exposure during the summer can cause cracks in the material of external pipes and drainage. A thorough inspection of your outdoor and indoor plumbing every summer will help ensure your pipes keep working.

Water drips under sinks and around valves can be a sign of cracking or leaking. Strong or out-of-ordinary smells from drainage points or toilets can also indicate that something is wrong. Call for a plumber immediately before the problem gets out of hand.

4. Check your fire extinguisher(s) and smoke detectors

Summer in Australia is synonymous with fire warnings. Checking your fire extinguishers and smoke detectors to make sure that you are prepared for a sudden fire is one of the most essential summer property maintenance tasks.

Fire extinguishers may not work if they are expired. Make sure that all the fire extinguishers in your property are still useable in case of an emergency.

If the batteries of your smoke detectors are dead, replace them. If they seem to be malfunctioning, definitely call in an expert to inspect your smoke detectors. Knowing that your smoke alarm will go off in an emergency is of the greatest importance to keep you and others safe.

5. Get rid of any mould build-up

The humid conditions that summer can bring can promote mould growth inside and outside of a property. Depending on your property’s location, it could be wise to research what types of mould and mildew are common in your local area so that you know what you are looking for when you perform this summer property maintenance task.

Mould can cause allergic reactions and respiratory problems. In some severe cases, prolonged mould exposure can cause people to experience mould toxicity, which can be fatal.

Prevent mould from affecting you, your staff, and your visitors by proactively checking for and destroying any mould you come across in your property. If you find a severe mould infestation, call a professional to help you remove it safely.

6. Clean your property’s exteriors

The often-strong winds of summer, plus continuously blooming and flowering plants, can cause dust, allergens, and other microscopic particles to settle on your property’s exteriors.

When people walk into your property, they track this collected dust and allegerns from the outside to the inside. This can increase visitors’ impressions of the property during their visit. Regularly deep-cleaning your property’s interiors will thus minimise the presence of these dust and germs inside your property, maximising your health and your property’s cleanliness.

Summer always puts me in the mood to get someone else to clean my house.

Unknown

If these summer property maintenance tasks seem too big for you to do, professional property maintenance companies can definitely help you maintain your property properly. They have the skills and tools necessary to finish this list, as well as specialist equipment for more specific cleaning tasks such as carpet cleaning or deep stain removal.

With our expertise and commitment to excellence, never worry about cleaning your property in the summer again. Star PM have over 19+ years of experience in property maintenance and commercial cleaning. Contact us, and stay cool and relaxed this summer.

Your event is over. The last guest has finally left, and your staff are now beginning the event cleaning process. You can see in their eyes that they’re exhausted from a long day of work but they still have to finish sweeping, tidying up any leftover food, wiping down tables or benchtops, collecting rubbish – it’s not an easy job for anybody!

If you’re someone who owns an event management cluster, it’s going to be even harder on you. Your full focus should ideally be on other aspects of the event – such as event timelines, lighting, decorations, food or drink service, the entertainment and music – rather than checking how clean the toilets are or thinking about post-event cleaning services.

The more prepared you are, the less pressure you feel.

Orrin Woodward

Making sure that your event cleaning process is organised as you plan your event will drastically reduce the pressure that you and your staff will feel as the event winds down. But where do you start?

1. Organise your cleaning supplies

Cleaning can’t start without the right tools. Having the right supplies, materials, and equipment prepared and on hand will not only make the cleaning process smoother and faster, but it will also keep the people cleaning safe as they deal with potentially hazardous items and substances.

Here is a short list of basic cleaning equipment to get you started:

• PPE Equipment, such as face masks and rubber gloves.
• Cleaning cloths, preferably paper towels or microfibre cloths
• Separate bin bags for bio-degradable and non-biodegradable collection
• Glass cleaners, surface cleaning sprays, and carpet stain removal solutions
• Vacuums
• Colour-coded mop system
• Litter-picks

Keep these items handy and make sure your staff know where they are on the day of the event to maximise efficiency.

2. Pre-plan your event’s waste removal

With every passing year, staying eco-conscious and adopting eco-friendly practices becomes increasingly important. Ensure that your event  stays environmentally friendly by pre-planning and organising your event’s waste removal.

If your event is in a public area, speak to local authorities to understand local waste removal rules. Organise designated event rubbish bins and arrange for access to waste collection sites for a smoother cleaning process and prevent public littering. You could even create a comprehensive recycling plan for your event’s waste to minimise your event’s environmental footprint.

If there is a high chance that your event will generate hazardous waste, speak to professional waste removal companies to develop a hazardous waste removal plan.

3. Follow standard patterns and procedures

It’s good to have special rules and steps in place for event clean-up, but be sure to base your event cleaning procedures on standard cleaning patterns to help you take care of every aspect of cleaning without missing any areas. For example, you might need to do a more extensive carpet clean after a big event, but benches, tables, and chairs will still need to be wiped and sanitised as usual.

Use pre-existing cleaning procedures at your event’s venue or location as a base to create your own event cleaning check-list.

Hiring a Professional

Although it could be cost effective to clean your event yourself, it could be more efficient and reliable to hire cleaning professionals to manage your event’s cleanliness.

Not only will an event cleaning company help you with cleaning up after an event, they will also be able to help you clean and prepare your venue before your event starts. They have the skills and tools necessary for specialised cleaning, such as carpet cleaning, window cleaning, or deep stain removal.

Stay Accountable

The biggest benefit of hiring a professional cleaning company for your event is increasing the accountability of your event’s hygiene and cleanliness. A professional will comprehensively cover everything in place to exceed your expectations. They would also remain transparent with their process and progress as they follow any pre-determined cleaning procedures, allowing you to focus your energy elsewhere during your event.

I’m a cleaner, not a magician… but I can see why you might be confused

Unknown

At Star PM, we are dedicated to satisfying all our client’s cleaning needs. We use the latest in environmental and recycling techniques in our waste disposal and cleaning procedures. Providing a safe working environment for our large team of dedicated staff, we will help you manage your event’s cleanliness and hygiene from conception to completion. Contact us today for a quote and let us work our magic on your next event.

National Recycling Week is upon us! Held every year during the second week of November (7th to 13th November 2022), this year’s theme is:

Waste isn’t waste until you waste it.

But what does that mean?

Planet Ark, the organisers of National Recycling Week, says that this year’s theme wants to encourage our community to consider how we use resources that we already have by giving them a second life to reduce the need for buying and using newly produced resources.

This is especially important when we consider that Australia generates approximately 76 million tonnes of waste a year. And out of that, almost 84%, or 63.8 million tonnes of waste, is generated by commercial businesses and industries.

How Does Your Business Look?

Is your business producing as much, or more, or less, waste today as it did two years ago? Reducing and recycling waste will not only save your business money on costly waste hauling but it will also demonstrate industry leadership and contribute to corporate social responsibility by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and reduce the global hazards to human health caused by our waste streams.

Over our years of experience with rubbish removal and commercial cleaning, we have developed ways to encourage our clients to reduce waste here at Star Property Management. Here are six tips to help your business reduce waste production.

Reduce Waste Today!

1. Compost

Organic waste is typically the heaviest portion of the waste stream, and due to its weight, is one of the costliest to remove.  In the U.S., through a strong composting program, the Seattle Mariners saved $114,000 in waste removal fees at Safeco Field in 2013. Plates, forks, cups and napkins at the stadium are all either compostable or recyclable, and the stadium boasts a waste diversion rate of over 90%.

Composting is another great option, especially for buildings with beautiful gardens and landscapes. Having your own composting program will keep your building’s greenery vibrant and healthy whilst reducing your waste. Otherwise, there are many composting programs that will remove your waste and turn it into nutrient-rich compost.

2. Audit your facility

Take a look around your facility and evaluate the supply chain of items that become waste. What consumables do you stock? Can you switch to recyclable or compostable products? How are waste bins placed? By keeping your recycling and composting bins more convenient to reach, your staff and visitors will be more likely to use those than traditional rubbish bins.

Many Australian corporations now include the Australasian Recycling Label on their packages. Place signage around waste disposal areas to encourage your staff and visitors to follow their instructions.

Evaluate how full the compactors, dumpsters and recycling containers are prior to pick-up. Facilities that increase their recycling rates often can decrease the frequency of pick-ups, thus saving additional money.

3. Reduce packaging

The NSW Government has now banned businesses and community organisations from supplying single-use plastics. And for good reason! One-third of waste in developed countries comes from packaging alone.

Evaluate the packaging used in your business. Can you eliminate single-use containers? A simple switch from corrugated cardboard to reusable plastic shipping containers saved Pepsi-Cola $44 million. Are there similar alternatives for you?

4. Eliminate bottled water

Ditch the bottles in favour of filters and glasses. Bottled water costs 2,000 times more than tap water and it regularly loses taste tests to tap water.

Provide glasses or reusable bottles, and a filter in your company’s break room. They will pay for themselves.

5. Go paperless

Technology offers cheaper and better alternatives to using paper.

CBRE recently went paperless at its downtown Los Angeles world headquarters. The office purged over 5 million sheets of paper, saving money on the space required for storage, and reducing ongoing printing needs by 50%.

Along with other strategies, going paperless has helped the company save 30% over a 10-year period on the LA office as compared to a traditional one.

6. Collect e-waste every day

Electronic waste is highly hazardous. In Guiyu, China, the city with the largest e-waste disposal site in the world, 80 percent of children suffer from respiratory ailments.

Offer a bin where employees can put e-waste from both home and from work. Make sure that your e-waste vendor is actually recycling, as many sell the waste to overseas entities that do not follow through with recycling. Work with a vendor that is third-party certified through R2 Solutions or E-Stewards.

Sustainability has to be a way of life to be a way of business.

Anand Mahindra

Over the past several years, our society as a whole has become much more conscious of the environment. As Australia’s waste challenges continue to grow, we all need to Step Up and support solutions which will move us towards a circular economy of Reduce, Reuse, Recycle – where everything is a resource, and there is no such thing as waste.

“A clean place is a safe place.” – Anonymous

Feeling Overwhelmed?

Still not sure about how to start with commercial spring cleaning? Let us at Star Property help you with your spring cleaning so that you can rest easy knowing that your property is as ready as it can be as the warmer months begin.