It's that time of year again! Darwin's sweaty season, AKA the Build Up!

According to the BOM, the NT's 2021 Build Up is off to an early and sweaty start. Soaring humidity is expected to increase by September 2021 onwards, which brings sweltering conditions and potential early wet season downpours. 

 

Pre-Cyclone Clean Up & Maintenance during the Build Up

A big part of Build Up Maintenance is preparing for the Wet Season's stormy, wild weather. 

PRE-CYCLONE CLEAN UP: The annual hard rubbish collection is arranged by your local council. Items that will be collected include white goods, air conditioners, steel, bicycles, furniture and household building materials. 

 

• Darwin:
  • Zone 1 (Green) - Monday 6 September 2021
  • Zone 2 (Blue) - Monday 20 September 2021
  • click here for more info

 

• Palmerston: click here to find out more

 

As you're clearing the debris from your property, there are some other maintenance items that are good to tick off, including:

 

CHECK AIR CONS:  We'd ask that tenants do a regular clean of the filters.  For owners this is a great time to look at the annual servicing of all air conditioners at home. Regular servicing will lengthen the lifetime of the air con unit, keep electricity costs lowered as the unit will not be working as hard to keep cool, and it is a proactive action in ensuring tenants remain cool and not inconvenienced. Costs can be as low at $100 per unit.

 

GARDENING:  Hard rubbish doesn't include green waste.  So if palm fronds have piled up in the backyard, we'd suggest doing a tip run.  For owners It's also a good time of year to consider pruning and thinning of large plants around your gardens prior to the real onset of the wet season. 

We work with a number of gardeners that can attend to overall garden trim back and tidy – and report any irrigation issues to ensure the reticulation is maintained during the wet (yes, this is necessary too, to prevent wearing and leaks).

 

GUTTERS: Don't forget to ensure the gutters are clear of leaf debris. Failure to do so can cause the rainwater to build up in the gutters and cause roof leaks.

 

VACANCIES: Properties available for lease during the final months of the year are susceptible to extended vacancies due to an oversupply of property on the market, and a reduction in market activity at this time of year. To ensure that we can minimise your vacancy and maximise your income – please ensure that property upgrades and refurbishments are considered to maintain your property at a high standard and comparable to other properties on the market. You may want to consider bathroom and kitchen refurbishments, tile and grout cleaning, replacing discoloured and aging fans and electrical switches that have yellowed, consider some painting to life the presentation, replacement of appliances, re-laminating kitchen cupboard edges ... We can project a maintenance plan and upgrades list for your consideration – have you read your inspection reports lately and discussed this with your Property Manager?

As always, our Property Managers are readily available for arranging any of the above, for helping obtain quotes or for general chats about about property maintenance. 

 

For a bit of a laugh, check out ABC Darwin's Build Up Song

 

Further Reading

• Click here for more maintenance tips
• Click here for cyclone preparations and how to protect your residence against cyclone damage.