With solid documentation on the table, it becomes easier for housing associations and municipalities to ensure a long lifespan for residents’ small oases.
Balconies are small oases for many people, but they often conceal hidden problems such as cracks, rust and water ingress. Proper maintenance and timely repairs are crucial to ensure their lifespan and preserve residents’ quality of life.
Demolish or repair?
When problems arise, the most difficult question often emerges: Should the balcony be demolished, or can it be repaired? Many housing associations, municipalities and property owners face this dilemma.
It is a dilemma that many housing associations, municipalities and property administrators face when they see the old damaged balconies. CEJ Ejendomsadministration A/S also faced this question when a couple of balconies in a property in Frederiksberg showed signs of rust damage.
'A good starting point was to obtain a qualified overview of the extent of the damage before we could determine the future of the balconies. Therefore, we contacted FORCE Technology, whose concrete experts carried out a building-technical investigation, which not only gave us the documentation we wanted for the extent of the damage, but also included renovation proposals', explains property inspector Søren Aaby Olsen from the company.
Does the financial side add up?
There is a great need to maintain especially older concrete balconies. However, many housing associations and municipalities are somewhat hesitant because of the risk of bleak financial prospects.
But precisely by having a building-technical investigation of the condition of the concrete carried out, it is possible to establish a realistic strategy and timetable for the maintenance, so that the finances add up.
Clarify the cause of the damage
The cause of the damage must be identified first. Frequent causes are poor water drainage, leaking joints, casting defects and cracks. Without addressing these underlying problems, repairs can become expensive and ineffective.
'Far too many concrete repairs are carried out today without certain knowledge of what is causing the damage. Without that knowledge, any repair is an expensive temporary solution, because the damage reappears. If you want to find a lasting solution, you must put an effective stop to the cause. Therefore, a thorough building-technical investigation is the foundation for a reliable and financially sound renovation effort', says concrete specialist Brian Kofoed, FORCE Technology.
In most cases, a visual inspection will give an indication of the nature of the problem. If supplemented with chipping away and core drilling of concrete samples and non-destructive measurements, a very precise damage picture can be obtained. On that basis, it is possible to prepare a realistic renovation proposal that is durable in the long term.
Choose the right adviser
With the right adviser, the association is able to prioritise the tasks, so that they either address the most important tasks first or have several related tasks carried out at the same time.
'For us as property administrators – and I am sure that this also applies to housing associations and other developers – it is important to obtain an independent investigation from experts who have both the expertise and the technical equipment in order. This provides the best possible basis when the decision on renovation is to be made. We have had a good dialogue with the concrete specialists about finding the technically best and most financially sound renovation of our balconies', says property inspector Søren Aaby Olsen.
Therefore, it is also important that there is close dialogue on the task between, for example, building owners, the property inspector and the housing sector’s adviser, because both the scope and methods of the investigation and the renovation proposals must correspond to the level of ambition and finances.
