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As business owners, we spend a lot of time perfecting the look of our brands. The color, the storefront, the packaging of products, and everything in between are meticulously planned to ensure our customers get the same experience every time. Branding is arguably the most important element of marketing as a whole, and it doesn’t stop at the doors. Creating curb appeal for your business can help your brand stand apart from the rest and entice customers to stop even before they know your business’ name. 

At MaintenX, we work hard to ensure our clients’ buildings are in tip-top shape. Part of this is exterior maintenance, including landscaping, roofing repair, exterior HVAC maintenance, and more. We’ve learned a thing or two about curb appeal for businesses, and can help you make your building stand out on your block. 

Below are ten different ways you can instantly improve your curb appeal with the help of the MaintenX team: 

• Invest in eco-friendly landscaping to improve the look and function of your outdoor environment
• Schedule parking lot maintenance to get rid of potholes, repaint faded markers, and improve the overall appearance of your parking lot
• Clean up exterior HVAC units to prevent your building from looking old or worn
• Invest in roofing maintenance annually to ensure your building looks new and well-maintained
• Repair concrete sidewalks and hardscape as needed
• Paint your front door and exterior every few years to keep it looking fresh
• Pressure wash the exterior annually to prevent dirt buildup
• Clean and replace signage annually to prevent fading and build-up
• Update fencing as it ages
• Clean and upgrade to energy-efficient windows

With these tips, you can make your building’s exterior shine. For more help with landscaping and exterior maintenance service, contact your local MaintenX team or visit our Resource Center.

MaintenX strives to offer our clients eco-friendly options for their HVAC, plumbing, roofing, electrical systems, and even landscaping because we know how big a difference it can make for our communities. Even small acts of energy savings can make large-scale impacts on our environment, and even help our client’s bottom line. And, the best part is, that eco-friendly design can be easy to implement for almost any small business. 

How Eco-Friendly Landscaping Benefits Your Business

Eco-friendly landscaping is a priority to many businesses because sustainability is a part of their mission and core values. However, many businesses soon discover that their eco-friendly mission is also good for their bottom line. Sustainable landscaping can help your business: 

• Save money on water and energy costs
• Improve curb appeal with easy-to-manage foliage
• Help your brand become a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified business 
• Reduce lawn service costs overall with plants that are designed for hardiness in your zone

Eco-friendly landscaping removes traditional assumptions about what is and isn’t needed for commercial lawn care, and makes it easier for you to create a beautiful, sustainable outdoor environment for your business. 

10 Ways to Create Eco-Friendly Landscaping 

These ten changes can make your commercial landscaping eco-friendly and inviting to visitors: 

• Choose eco-friendly sprinklers and irrigation systems to reduce water consumption
• Plant pollinator-friendly flowers to help support bee and wildlife populations in your area
• Choose drought-resistant groundcover over traditional lawn grass to reduce water and herbicide use
• Purchase organic fertilizers or compost rather than chemical fertilizers to reduce chemical pollution in your landscaping
• Reduce herbicide and pesticide use with natural alternatives and pest-resistant varieties 
• Choose native plants that are easy to care for and require less maintenance in your hardiness zone
• Switch to battery-powered machines for lawncare to reduce fuel consumption
• Choose sustainable materials for hardscapes such as bamboo and stone rather than plastic or certain hardwoods
• Use solar or LED lights for outdoor use
• Design your outdoor space to be used by employees (such as an outdoor lunch area or walking park) to allow them a space to recharge and encourage active lifestyles at work. 

These ten tips can make all the difference when designing your business’s landscaping. For more tips and ideas for sustainable landscaping design, visit our Resource Center.

In Florida, hurricane season falls between July and November, with the most intense storms usually coming through in September and October. During these months, it’s important for businesses to prepare ahead of time to ensure their property and employees are safe. This preparation should include evacuation protocols, plans for safely storing merchandise, and an emergency plan for boarding up the building. You should also include a post-hurricane plan for your business to allow for easier reopening if your business isn’t damaged in the storm. 

When everyone returns from evacuation after a storm, there are four things you should be prepared to face: 

• A lack of power, cell service, and internet citywide
• Limited road access due to fallen trees and debris
• Flooding due to storm surge
• Exterior building damage including broken windows, roof damage, and other signs of wear and tear from hurricane-force winds

If you want to be back in business soon after returning from evacuation, you should invest in a backup generator to ensure you have power regardless of the grid. Many businesses and neighborhoods will be without power for weeks, but if you are able to open, you can help your community recover much more quickly. 

Typically, we recommend one of the four brands for commercial generator installation: 

• Generac
• Commins
• Briggs & Straton
• Kubota

Each of these brands has a specialty line of commercial generators, both portable and installed. They are the top-rated generators in the country, and all MaintenX technicians are familiar with maintenance for these brands. We offer generator installation, repairs, and preventative maintenance to ensure that if the lights go out, your generator is ready to go. 

If you are interested in installing a new generator for your business or are in need of repairs before this hurricane season, contact your local MaintenX today for help!

Commercial flooring takes quite the beating on a day-to-day basis. It receives much more foot traffic than your home flooring and therefore needs a more involved care and maintenance plan than what you do at home. While this may seem like a low priority to most businesses, there are several reasons why investing in your flooring can be good for your bottom line. 

Flooring that is well-cared for will last longer, leading to fewer maintenance and repair expenses. If you have wood flooring, it also pays to take care of it so you don’t ever deal with rot, mold, or mildew problems. Flooring can make a good impression on guests as well, just as dirty floors will make people hurry for the door. All of these factors combined make flooring maintenance much more important than it may seem at first. 

If you want to improve the look of your commercial floors, these three tips can make maintenance much simpler: 

• Sweep and mop on a regular schedule – Depending on how much foot traffic your business sees, you may have to sweep daily and mop several times a week in order to maintain your floors properly. Bathroom floors and front entrances are most important because their cleanliness will make the greatest impression on customers. 
• Invest in the right supplies – Certain floor cleaners only work for certain surfaces, and using the wrong one can damage your flooring over time. For example, wood needs a specific cleaning solution that won’t cause rot or water damage with repeated use. Make sure to look at the labels of your cleaning supplies and use the right products for everyday cleaning. 
• Invest in deep cleaning – Even well-maintained floors will need periodic waxing, spot treatment, and other deep cleaning services to preserve their freshness. Make sure to talk to your MaintenX technician to determine a proper cleaning schedule for your flooring type and business traffic. 

MaintenX offers flooring repairs, installations, and general maintenance services for businesses across the U.S. If you’re looking for an alternative to flooring care in your area, contact us today to schedule a consultation!

A great deal of time is spent designing most front reception spaces for businesses. A waiting room or reception area should be a place where customers can relax, unwind, and learn about your business while they wait for service. Whether you’re operating an auto service center or a medical facility, the reception area should be a place where you spend a great deal of time planning and designing for the optimal customer experience. 

Follow these four tips to make your waiting area a comfortable, relaxed, and inviting environment for all visitors: 

Add fresh scents. 

Your reception area makes the first impression on customers, and you can make it a memorable one with a fresh scent. Many memories are made in association with smells, so if your front entrance has a plug-in air freshener or candle, you’re likely to make a positive memory every time with customers. 

Spend time decorating. 

The decor you choose should not only make your reception area more functional, but also more beautiful. Don’t be afraid to add color, works of art, and decorative elements such as flowers or sculptures to make your waiting area inviting and pleasing to look at. While a plain reception room will serve its purpose, it won’t make the positive impression on your guests that a well-thought-out one will. 

Provide comfortable seating. 

Arguably the most important element of a waiting area is its seating. Your guests don’t want to wait in uncomfortable chairs, so invest in quality seating that is well-spaced out for guest comfort. 

Add signs for restrooms and important departments within the building. 

Many customers will not want to wait to find areas of your building such as a returns counter, restrooms, or service desk. You can help direct them with obvious signs for these various areas of your store, thus expediting the experience for them and reducing demand on your reception staff. 

These principles can apply to any building, whether you’re designing a medical center, restaurant, or retail store. If you’d like more tips and tricks for commercial interior design, visit our Resource Center. 

The front entrance is one of the most carefully planned and designed areas of any business facility. It makes the first impression on customers and can be the difference between making a sale and giving one away to your competition depending on how you approach the design. While some storefront design principles are shared across the board, others will make your business stand out from the rest and help you make a more successful storefront. 

Below are four ways MaintenX can help you improve your business front entrance with minimal cost and maximal returns. 

Paint your storefront an inviting color.

Your storefront should instantly welcome your customers with an inviting ambiance. The colors chosen for the front entrance should be on-brand and visually appealing. You can also add décor elements, depending on the size and type of business you operate. Be sure to schedule paint retouches with MaintenX if your colors aren’t as fresh as they used to be. 

Add obvious signs for restrooms and various departments. 

Most customers in today’s day and age don’t want to immediately talk to a sales associate to get information such as where your restroom is or how to find a certain item they want. Make the shopping experience easily manageable with signs for important areas in your store such as your restrooms, returns desk, and other various service areas. 

Keep your front entrance squeaky clean. 

Even if you offer the best service in town, your clients will likely be unimpressed if you have a dirty, humid, or otherwise unpleasant front entrance. If they can see dirt, cracks in the drywall, or other signs of deterioration, they will assume this is not a quality place to shop. Call your MaintenX team to fix any obvious signs of degradation near your front entrance to make your first impression a great one. 

Organize cart corrals, sale signs, and other common front entrance displays. 

There are certain things customers will expect to find at your front entrance, such as cart corrals or shopping baskets. They’ll also be looking for your current sales, specials, or other deals your business is offering currently, which should be the very first information they can find at your front entrance. These elements gracefully encourage customers to stick around and shop without being too “in your face” and counterproductive to the consumer experience. 

MaintenX offers both interior and exterior maintenance services to ensure your front entrance makes the right impression every time. To learn more about our general maintenance services, contact your local MaintenX team today!

Restrooms are one of the most important parts of any business’ interior design. While your primary retail or workspace may seem like it makes the biggest impression, the restroom is the place where your customers will take pause and notice things like cleanliness and décor. Your bathroom not only needs to be clean and inviting, but should reflect the pride you take in your business. If you’re looking for ways to improve your bathroom space, start with these three elements: 

Invest in quality appliances. 

The toilets, sinks, and countertops in your bathroom should all be clean, well-maintained and modernized for commercial use. You don’t want guests to fiddle with loose handles or get sprayed with water when they try and wash their hands. Investing in quality appliances will also ensure your staff isn’t frustrated by a low-grade restroom they have to use every day. 

Add on-brand décor.

Your bathroom should reflect the ambiance of our business and include colors, furnishings, and décor elements that match the rest of your business. You can add some seating for guests waiting, or some flower vases and decorative soap dispensers to add a bit of color to the restroom. These small details will make all the difference in creating a pleasant restroom experience for your guests. 

Invest in the right doors. 

Many people dislike using public restrooms because they feel they don’t have enough privacy. If your restroom doors have large spaces in them or if they sometimes open accidentally, replace them as soon as possible to ensure your guests and staff are comfortable at all times. 

Add fresh scents. 

Your bathroom should always smell clean, but you can take it one step further by installing air fresheners or periodically adding fresh potpourri. This will transform your restroom into an instantly inviting space, and ensure foul odors in the restroom are kept to a minimum. 

MaintenX helps businesses design restrooms and install state-of-the-art appliances to make their spaces stand out from the rest. If you have questions about new appliance installation, repairs, or preventative maintenance, contact your local MaintenX team today.

Electrical issues are an uncommon but serious issue for commercial facilities. Most office buildings and retail centers are built in newer buildings, so the electrical systems are in relatively new condition. However, older buildings can have wiring that is decades old, and prone to issues as it ages or becomes damaged through external factors. 

If you are experiencing electrical problems such as shorts or flickering lights, your building could face more serious threats that need to be addressed. Some of the most common issues associated with electrical wiring damage include:

Power outages

Old or outdated wiring can short or quit working altogether, leading to an outage exclusively within your building. This can not only halt the workflow of your building, but cause damage to computers and other technologies if not addressed. If you are already experiencing shorts, make sure to call your MaintenX electrician for a consultation. 

Electric shocks

Electric shocks are a serious danger to your facility if you’re not up to date on your electrical maintenance. Some may be small and result in no more than a zap when plugging into an outlet, but major issues with your electrical system can pose serious health risks to staff. If your building has old wiring that is starting to fail, avoid this risk and call your MaintenX contractor for help. 

Electrical fires

Electrical fires are another common danger of faulty wiring and are more common than many facility managers realize. These can range in seriousness from a small spark to a fire that can cause permanent damage to your building. Electrical safety comes first at MaintenX, which is why we always check for signs of electrical damage in advance to prevent these sorts of accidents from happening at your building. 

MaintenX takes your electrical safety and maintenance very seriously. If you have concerns about your electrical system and want to schedule an inspection, call your local MaintenX team today!

 

MaintenX specializes in roofing repair for commercial facilities, and one of the things we stress the most is perioding roofing inspections for all of our clients. While you may not think your roof needs much preventative care in order to stay strong, it’s important to catch issues early. Your roof is one of the most important structures of your building, and neglecting it can spell disaster for your entire business. 

If you don’t catch roof damage early, one of these four issues is likely to pop up within the interior of your facility:

Ceiling leaks

Leaks are the most obvious issue relating to roof damage, but many facility managers don’t realize just how serious they are. Leaks in the ceiling mean that water has infiltrated several barriers of your roof and is now causing water damage to your building. If not taken care of soon, it can lead to mold, mildew, and a host of other secondary problems for your building. 

Pest problems

Cracks and damage to your roofing allow the perfect entrance for rodents, roaches, and other pests to enter your facility. Even with frequent pest control service, this type of damage to your building can make it difficult to control pests. Repairing roof damage ensures there is no place for animals such as squirrels and rats to make a nest within the roofing of your building. 

Insulation and HVAC issues

Like any gap in the insulation of your building, roof damage can cause several problems with climate control in your building. If your roof is not properly insulated, your HVAC system will have to work overtime to keep the temperature and humidity at an acceptable level. This can not only cause issues with climate control, but can lead to HVAC issues later down the line. 

Roof collapse

If roof damage is left unattended, you may be at serious risk during a natural disaster event. Though it is unlikely that your roof will collapse on its own, if it is not well-maintained it will be weaker when standing up against hurricanes, tornadoes, or other major storms in your area. Even if insurance covers the repairs, a roof collapse is one of the worst damages a business can experience after a storm. However, you can help prevent this by maintaining your roof and scheduling regular inspections to catch issues early. 

If you need to schedule a roofing inspection soon, contact your local MaintenX team today to get started! We specialize in roofing repair and preventative care and are happy to help you begin a roof maintenance program at your facility.

At MaintenX, we strive to provide the best preventative plumbing maintenance for all of our commercial clients. While not every business invests in preventative care, we emphasize its importance at every site visit to try and minimize reactive repairs. This is because one of the biggest issues we are called out for is water damage.

Water damage in commercial facilities is most often caused by a pipe burst, leak, or other sign of plumbing deterioration. When interior water damage like this occurs, it poses several risks to your facility: 

Mold and mildew growth

Mold and mildew are the biggest issues related to water damage, not only because they’re so common, but because they pose serious health risks to your staff. If mold and mildew begin to circulate through your HVAC system, it can cause detrimental effects to your indoor air quality including “sick building syndrome,” where an entire building’s staff and clientele become sick with respiratory issues. If you want to avoid this, avoid water damage at all costs. 

Increased pest problems

Moisture often attracts pests to your facility, even if you schedule regular pest control services. These services will exterminate existing pests and repel them to some degree, but water damage creates an environment that is too tempting for roaches and rodents to pass up. Plus, water damage can increase the likelihood of termite problems at your facility. 

Drywall damage

When water from plumbing leaks into the drywall, you can guarantee you’ll have rot, mold, and potentially structural damage to deal with. This can lead to expensive and cumbersome repairs to your facility’s interior if not treated quickly. There are methods to minimize water damage on drywall, but it must be addressed as soon as you notice the problem to prevent damage to the interior wall structures. 

Water damage can quickly snowball into serious repairs for your facility if you’re not careful. If you are experiencing water damage and want to act on it now, contact your local MaintenX technicians today for help.