Elevators not only help us get to our destinations faster, but it also makes living and working in multiple level buildings possible. In the United States, it is estimated that there are over 900,000 elevators that provide more than 18,000,000,000 trips annually. This heavy, repeated use means that regular maintenance, monitoring, and testing are extremely important to minimize the costly repairs that can arise. By failing to implement preventative maintenance, these repairs can quickly spiral out of control, causing emergency shutdowns or notably expensive repairs, which can lead to unhappy guests, or even worse accidents.
Elevator maintenance is easy to ignore because we don’t regularly see the dirt, dust, trash, liquid, debris, sludge and waste that builds up inside these elevator shafts. These shafts, contain collective pits designed to hold these byproducts from daily operations. Most people are surprised at how much debris can accumulate in an elevator pit over time. Most commonly, there’s a layer of greasy dust that builds up and is compounded by the other debris that gets blown or thrown into the shaft. Regular removal and disposal of all this debris is critical to keeping the elevator working safely and efficiently.
Although debris usually collects in these pits, properly placing equipment to reach these areas is one of the biggest challenges. Accessing these shafts and pits requires vacuum and water hoses to be laid out hundreds of feet through a variety of corridors, passageways, convention halls, foyers, kitchens, conference rooms and down numerous flights of stairs. Once these hoses are in position, our team can get to work operating the equipment to efficiently extract the debris. This mixture of debris containing dust, trash, sludge, waste, and liquid is blasted by our high-pressured power washer to break up and liquify the material, while our high-powered vacuum truck simultaneously extracts the waste via a suction process. Every job and location is unique, and in some cases, highly-skilled confined space entry (CSE) crews are utilized, so the shaft and pits can be entered to remove debris more efficiently. Either way, communication is vital due to long lengths between the interior crew team performing the maintenance and the equipment operators located outside the facility. This constant communication keeps everyone in sync, safe and efficient while executing the job.
Once the elevator shafts and pits are cleared of debris buildup, they can now be examined for any cracks, leaks or other damages that could’ve gone undetected and worsened over time. What seems like minor damages, can worsen very quickly, resulting in significantly more expensive repairs and unexpected shutdowns. This maintenance is not only critical to the efficiency and safety of an elevator, but it can also help with its longevity.
Always performed by our highly experienced team, our comprehensive maintenance cleanings from ACE Environmental can include the following:
- Pump Outs
- Oil/Grit & Oil/Water Separator Cleaning
- Combustible Dust Cleanings
- Confined Space Entry (CSE)
- High-Pressured Water Blasting
- Degreasing
- 24/7 Spill Cleanup
- Transportation and Disposal of Hazardous & Non-Hazardous Waste
Next time your elevator needs maintenance needs so you can perform repairs or inspections, call us! With one of the largest fleets of AirMovers, Tankers and Combination Jetter/Vacuum Trucks, plus one of the only environmental contractors operating an MDE-Approved Disposal Facility, ACE Environmental remains a very competitive environmental partner servicing a plethora of industries throughout the Maryland, DC, Virginia, West Virginia, Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey areas.
You can count on us – we’ll ACE it!
