7 Places to Check Your Office for Issues

More and more people have begun working from home in recent years, but this doesn’t mean shared offices are a thing of the past just yet. As the world gradually gets back on its feet, many employees are now flocking back to their offices. This transition is bound to be rocky for employees and managers alike. To make matters more complicated, some offices might not have received regular maintenance during this reprieve -- there have been stories of half-eaten apples left on desks prior to the pandemic only to be found exactly where they were all those months later. Such an anecdote is representative of the types of issues businesses may be facing as they kick their offices back into gear. At the very least, a thorough cleaning is likely in order. And even if things appear normal on the surface, your office might require various repairs to make up for lost time, and some of these issues can be well-hidden until they become all too obvious.

With all this in mind, here are seven key areas to check in your office to stop any budding problems in their tracks.

7 Places to Check in Your Office for Any Issues

1. Your Office Building’s Siding

If you’re looking for problems inside your office, the siding that surrounds it might not seem like a sensible place to start. However, note that siding is the first line of defense your office has against the outside world. When a building’s exterior breaks down, its interior spaces become vulnerable to various environmental threats, such as pests, moisture, fungi, and more. So, securing your siding helps to better insulate your office from these unwanted forces. Professional pressure washing services can give your building a thorough cleaning to both restore its appearance and help reveal any issues that might need addressing. You might also find that commercial exterior painting is in order to update your office building and provide additional protection.

2. Corners and Concealed Areas Inside Your Office

Just as you should examine your siding for any breaches, you should do the same inside your office. If outdoor elements are going to gain access to your office’s interior, they’ll likely make their way inside via gaps and seams between walls and floors, cracks and holes in drywall, and so on. These issues can be difficult to detect, especially if furniture and other features are placed directly against walls and covering corners. It’s worth temporarily moving these features away from your walls to get a closer look at these areas within your office. Any holes, gaps, or cracks should be properly patched and/or caulked to protect your office from invasion. Performing some commercial painting touch-ups after the fact will complete the project and offer a seamless look.

3. Behind Wallcoverings

People have different opinions on wallpaper and other types of wall coverings, but these coverings can certainly add flavor to an office interior when tastefully done. Unfortunately, one of the greatest strengths of wallpaper is also one of its biggest setbacks -- sure, these coverings hide surface imperfections, but in doing so, they can prevent you from noticing underlying problems. Of course, if the problem is severe enough (i.e., major water damage), it will poke through these coverings. The thing is, you don’t want office issues to reach these levels of severity in the first place. For the most part, the only real way to assess your underlying drywall is to remove its wallpaper. Wallpaper removal comes with its own potential problems, too, namely in that the process can damage your drywall if not properly performed. If you’re not sure how to properly remove wallpaper or how to repair drywall after removing wallpaper, your best bet is to hire a professional contractor to handle every aspect of this.

4. HVAC System Components

The long-term condition of your office interior is largely dependent on the function of your heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems. Interiors that undergo wild fluctuations in temperature, humidity, and ventilation can run into all sorts of problems, including peeling and flaking of interior commercial painting, warped and cracked drywall, poor indoor air quality (IAQ), and increased energy costs. If your office is running into any of these sorts of issues upon your return, your HVAC units should be among the first features you inspect. Even if these systems aren’t at the root of your office’s issues, it’s important to perform periodic inspections to prevent potential problems in the future.

5. Office Flooring

Your office’s floors should also be high on your list of areas to inspect if you want to identify and prevent problems. Moisture, bacteria, and other contaminants can reside on and inside your flooring if it’s not well protected and maintained. Soft flooring (i.e., carpeting) can harbor loads of dust and dirt if not regularly cleaned, too. Uneven, dirty, and/or cracked floors also pose a major safety hazard for office occupants, so you must make sure your floors remain level, smooth, and slip-resistant.

6. Interior and Exterior Windows

Your office’s windows can also harbor potential problems. For starters, dirty interior and exterior windows reduce the amount of natural light that enters your office, potentially affecting your energy costs (as well as workplace morale). Cleanliness isn’t the only factor to consider when checking out your windows, however -- insulation is important, too. Old, worn down windows are less insulative and energy-efficient than their new, high-quality counterparts. Even if you can’t afford to replace your office windows any time soon, make sure all gaps between your windows, walls, and siding are thoroughly sealed so no air or small materials can get in or out.

7. Office Doors

Windows aren’t the only portals connecting the inside of your office to the outside world, of course. Your office’s entry/exit doors also represent a potential weak point, giving the environment access to your office’s interior. Installing storm doors provides an extra layer of protection and insulation, but this will only go so far if your primary door isn’t in great condition. Much like your windows and siding, your doors need to be sealed when closed -- eroded frames and worn down hardware can leave you with multiple openings for air, pests, and moisture to break through. As you look for ways to fortify your office, you might want to refinish your door.

Take Your Office Off High Alert

Numerous factors threaten the integrity and appeal of your office inside and out. While you can’t control everything, you can prevent the worst outcomes from befalling your office with periodic inspections, so long as you’re looking in all the right places. At Nash Painting, we have more than a decade of experience assessing, repairing, and enhancing commercial and residential spaces across Nashville, Franklin, and Brentwood, TN -- as such, we know what to look for and how to make it better, whatever the problem may be.

To learn more about us, our services, and our values, call us at 615-829-6858 today!