With late Fall and Winter very soon upon us – bringing frigid temperatures and possible major storms – your elevators now require some focused extra attention. First and foremost, make sure that your motor room is properly heated, ideally to at least 50 degrees Fahrenheit, and any broken windows and other outside air leaks are repaired. While preventing the motor room from becoming unduly cold helps prevent solidifying of the system’s vital fluids and potential system failure, there are other possibly disruptive and costly problems that the coming season can create for your elevator systems, which proper maintenance can help to avoid.

The Importance of Clean Door Tracks

Best practice is to keep your elevator door tracks clean and functional year-round – on both the car and hall sides – by establishing a regular maintenance program to help prevent costly downtime, needless emergency service and providing you peace of mind. But it is particularly important at this time of year, when clogging by pine needles from holiday trees, packed snow, ice, salt and all manner of dirt can severely aggravate the problem and create door-opening and closing issues.

Here’s what this type of maintenance typically entails:

• Thoroughly vacuuming out the door tracks
• Using stiff paint brushes to loosen and remove common track obstructions
• For more stubborn obstructions, using a stiff nylon parts-cleaning brush

Prepare for Harsh Weather & Major Storms

Under more temperate weather conditions, winter storms can bring severe flooding with its own special, potentially dangerous problems. To best protect your elevators and passengers when such conditions are expected to or do occur:

Before the storm arrives

• Check the condition of the pits and make sure that sump pumps are functional and not clogged
• In severe flooding areas, barricade the motor room to prevent, best as possible, entry by major amounts of water
• Close any vents and openings atop the hoistway to keep water out of the shaft

During potential flood conditions

• Position the cars at the top floors and shut down the system and power, making sure there are no remaining building occupants dependent on the elevators to vacate

D&D Can Help!

Regular preventative maintenance can go a long way toward avoiding trouble while saving unnecessary expense and inconvenience. As always, D&D stands ready to assist with a maintenance program custom-designed for your building, and any seasonal difficulties you may encounter!

Call (914) 347-4344 to make arrangements or with any emergency service you require.

COMING IN DECEMBER…

“How to Avoid Violations & Their Consequences”

…AND A REMINDER: Category 1 tests must be performed and submitted to the NYC DOB by December 31st 2020

Among owners/managers of buildings with hydraulic elevators, paying attention to your oil is typically not a priority.

But it should be.

Clean oil is vital to the “health” of hydraulic elevator systems. Like everything else, oil has an optimal lifetime of service, after which it begins to break down or go “bad.” It has been proven that bad oil can lead to a number of disruptive and costly consequences, including:

• Inconsistent valve operation which leads to misleveling
• Possible legal liabilities 
• Sudden unexpected repairs of pumps, valves, jacks, etc.
• Major inconvenience to tenants and visitors

Typical submersible motor

In short, neglecting the oil and tank – the “lifeblood” of a hydraulic system – can directly lead to a number of major problems.

The Solution for Oil & Tank Maintenance

To help our customers avoid future problems and needless expense, D&D has acquired a supply of oil analysis kits:

• A D&D technician will collect an oil sample which is then sent to a lab for analysis
• Based on this data, D&D can detect a potential problem and advise what corrective measures should be taken, heading off inconvenience and unnecessary repairs

Wear and friction are among the leading causes of hydraulic elevator failure. Debris and small metal particles are gradually released into the oil and interfere with the control valve and pump. The objective of this oil analysis service is to monitor the health of the oil and thereby proactively extend the life of the pump, valves and tank, while supporting long-haul system dependability.

D&D Stands Ready to Help!

D&D is systematically performing oil analysis on all our existing hydraulic elevator units.

Call (914) 347-4344 to learn how D&D can help keep your building at the cutting age of elevator safety, dependability and cost-efficiency.

Elevators & Covid 19

Questions abound everywhere these days around the safety of riding elevators during the Covid pandemic. Specifically owners and managers of residential and commercial buildings are asking what they can do to help promote safety for occupants (and their visitors) and, as caring landlords, keep them as happy tenants. Common questions include:

• What new developments are available right now to help make elevators safer during pandemics such as Covid 19 currently underway?
• What can property managers do right now to help promote passenger safety in their buildings? 

New Technologies Currently Available from D&D

 In progress are various technological developments designed to help make elevator cabs a safer environment – several of which D&D can already provide for new construction and modernization projects

• Voice-Activated Elevator Control Buttons
• Touchless Buttons
• Cab Air Purifier
• Cab Air Purifier with Sterilization System
• Dual UVC Germicidal & Dual HEPA Air Filtration Unit
• Car Sterilization & Purification Fan

Details for Covid Safety Products

What Property Managers Can Do Right Now

• Create queuing lines in lobbies, marking paths on the floor to direct people in and out
• In commercial buildings, schedule staggered employee arrival and departure times to avoid crowded elevator cabs
• Post signage in the lobby suggesting behaviors for passenger safety, assuming, in all cases, the wearing of masks:
  • Self-limit the number of passengers per ride and load the elevator in a checkerboard pattern, face forward
  • Have each passenger announce their desired floor, with the person nearest the button panel selecting for everyone, using their knuckles
  • Avoid conversation in the cab during the ride

D&D Stands Ready to Help!

Right now, D&D is able to offer several of the above new technologies for your building! Call (914) 347-4344 to learn how D&D can help put you at the cutting age of elevator safety.