The cold months are just around the corner, and although you and your business may still be in summer mode, refusing to let go, it is important to prepare your premises for the coming winter.
There are a whole host of little tweaks you can do in preparation for winter, like marketing strategies and work-from-home plans, but one of the most important is to ensure that your premises are in tip-top shape for winter, and safe to harbour your staff.
Here’s how you can go about that:
The first thing that springs to mind is colder weather, as winter draws closer. Colder weather often entails freezing temperatures, which can be detrimental to your business if pipes and water tanks decide to freeze over. Frozen or burst pipes are one of the leading causes of winter property damage, due to water expanding as it freezes over.
There are ways you can help to prevent the freezing and bursting of pipes:
Monitor any leaks, and fix them as soon as possible (Preferably during the winter season, when a leak isn’t quite as detrimental)
Ensure the interior temperature of your building never falls below zero, even in down hours
Install permanent or cheap temporary pipe insulation/heating systems to keep pipes at a good temperature
Patching up the outside of your building is important all year round, but winter brings with it a few more consequences of not doing. Making sure all cracks are filled in, holes are covered, tiles replaced and gutters fixed is important for the safety and smooth running of your business and premises.
Fixing cracks will prevent water freezing, expanding and making any deformities on your building even more substantial. Covering up any holes will prevent rain, snow or items blown around by the wind from getting into your building and causing damage. Ensuring gutters are fixed and supportive will ensure water goes where you want it to, and prevent them breaking under the weight of potential snow.
It is always better to ensure that your heating is in tip top condition, and fully maintained, during the summer, than it is to try and fix a dodgy heating system in the cold winter months. Put aside a little more money so you can cope with the rise in time you’ll be using your heating for.
Getting regular servicing is one sure-fire way to put your mind at rest about any heating problems during the winter.
Site access can often become a problem as the nights go darker, the weather worsens and temperatures drop. It’s nothing a little preparation cannot fix. When it comes to your staff getting to work, you need to make sure your premises are safe to be driven, walked or cycled on (See below for gritting materials) – it’s when it comes to suppliers, deliveries or bin collections that things get a little trickier.
Make sure your business is well signposted, with lights fitted to the signs so it can be seen in the early hours, or towards the end of the workday
Ensure that Any electric or automatic gates do not freeze over in the night, and burn out at the first use in the morning
Ensure that the floor is not too slippery, particularly for deliveries or bin collections, who may have to drag a 100KG bin up an ice slope.
Gritting materials are always essential in winter, but often because wildly expensive or scarce in winter due to high demand. Stocking up with gritting buckets, spades and extra salt supplies will leave your car parks, entrances, doorways or nearby roads clear and safe to drive, walk, cycle and even run along!
Pests are almost always associated with summer, and rightly so considering that is the season they’re most active in. You cannot rest on your laurels just because it is approaching the end of the year, though. Many bugs and rodents use winter as a chance to find somewhere warm – namely, your premises. Moths and flies will take any chance they get to enter your premises through available cracks, open windows or exposed areas. Rats and mice seeking food, warmth and shelter will absolutely love finding an easy-access part of your premises. Whether it be an unpatched wall, an open garage or an outbuilding – taking extra care to secure your premises goes a long way.
Find out how we’re helping small businesses around the UK prep for Winter with our new Gritting and Snow Clearance Service!
