Baseboards, tile, grout, vent fans..and the all-important shower curtain

Baseboards, tile, grout, vent fans...and the all-important shower curtain

Baseboards, tile, grout, vent fans...and the all-important shower curtain

Baseboards, tile, grout, vent fans...and the all-important shower curtain

Baseboards, tile, grout, vent fans...and the all-important shower curtain

Baseboards, tile, grout, vent fans...and the all-important shower curtain

In dealing with rental properties, the home/townhome/condo's bathroom may very well be the room in the place that presents opportunities for problems like no other area.  I'll just touch on a few of them here, and- you guessed it- they deal with baseboards, tile, grout, vent fans...and the all-important shower curtain.

Baseboards... If you look at the photo I've included here, you'll see that the top of the wooden baseboard has separated itself from the wall.  This isn't aesthetically appealing (though I've surely seen worse), but it's an example of something that can only get worse if not given a bit of attention.  The bathroom being the wettest part of a property, there's also an opportunity for water to get splashed into any points of separation- also a bad thing.

Tile/grout... It's important to keep tile in good condition- as chipped or cracked tiles lead to broken tiles.  Broken tiles also have a tendency to become missing tiles on the floor side of things.  While paper cuts are no fun, anyone that's ever suffered a porcelain or ceramic tile cut can attest to how paper cuts are far more enjoyable- and the last thing I want is for a tenant to cut themselves on a piece of tile of any sort.

Grout in terms of tile work anywhere (and the combination of grout/caulk in bathtubs and showers) is also very important.  Failing to maintain this can lead to the aforementioned missing tiles- as water gets between and underneath them and leads to their falling off.  The potential for water damage and mold damage is great here as well, as the progression from one small grout leak to a wall of tiles falling off can be a long, slow one- and one where a good bit of damage can be done before a tenant ever reports that anything's amiss.

Vent fans...  Vent fans serve a purpose- or folks wouldn't use them.  But that's one of the problems- a lot of folks don't see the need to use them!  While I've had exactly two true cases of toxic mold in my 11 years' in the property management business, I couldn't venture a guess as to how many times folks have called to report "mold" above their shower when they didn't use their vent fan.  These must be kept clean, they must be used every time one takes a shower- and tenants must report ones that stop working or get noisy for any reason so that they can be repaired or replaced.  Doing that alone will cut down on a number of maintenance calls- and eliminate the need for the "this is mold that will kill you, this is mold you need to take some Clorox and clean" conversation.

Well, that about sums it up for today's property management maintenance educational moment.  Other than talking about the shower curtain, that is...

Wouldn't think this would need much explainin', would you?  Think again.  The problems above can be minor ones or major ones, but trust that there's no fun involved when a neighbor living below a unit you manage has called the HOA to report water pouring through their ceiling- and the cause of said problem ends up being your tenant who's decided that shower curtains are just too danged expensive.

Baseboards, tile, grout, vent fans...and the all-important shower curtain