Adjusting the pump in old apartment buildings – emergency facilities can be life threatening

One fifth of old elevators are in an emergency condition.

In total, there are about 4,500 elevators installed in old apartment buildings in Lithuania. According to the Baltijos Liftai company, which maintains most of the elevators in the country, about 20 percent. The elevators of the old-construction apartment buildings are in a state of emergency. This means that they are dangerous to human life and health. According to the director of said company, Mantas Romaška, elevators often become an emergency due to age.

“More than half, even 60%, of the elevators installed in old apartment buildings are between 40 and 50 years old, and the lifespan of the elevator is up to 25 years,” says the interviewee.

According to M. Romaška, there are about 51 percent in Vilnius. Of all the elevators in Lithuania, therefore it is natural that even the elevators in poor condition are mostly in the capital. Next, Kaunas, third, Klaipeda.

The condition of the elevators deteriorated not overnight. As explained by the Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, Faculty of Mechanics (MF), Head of the Department of Mechatronics, Robotics and Digital Production prof. Dr. Vytautas Bučinskas, the period when elevators were probably the worst maintained is the end of the Soviet era and the beginning of independence.

“Many elevators would be poorly maintained during this period. If such elevators are in very poor condition, it is already necessary to decide whether they are worth maintaining or replacing. On the other hand, replacing Soviet elevators with new ones is expensive. The well equipment also costs, since it depends on the constructions of the elevator. If the elevator constructions change, the mines will have to be rebuilt, which is already a lot of money, ”stresses V. Bučinskas.

It must be inspected more than once a year.

Elevators in old and new buildings must be inspected and maintained. As explained by M. Romaška, the inspection of the technical condition of lifts is carried out by an expert from an accredited technical condition inspection body for potentially dangerous equipment (PPD) at least once a year.

In addition, we inspect the elevators that we maintain once a month ”, adds the interlocutor.

According to M. Romaška, the main criteria for failure of the elevator are as follows: general wear of the electrical control system, wear of the elevator control relays and power contactors, play in the endless torque of the main winch, broken insulation of the Elevator car control cable, worn main winch guide pulley, door drive reducer elevator speed limiter, rusted bottom of car frame, car door leaves and shaft.

Prof. Dr. V. Bučinskas emphasizes that the most important thing is the regular maintenance of the elevators, which should be more frequent than once a year.

“The various incidents are usually caused by insufficient and inopportune supervision (saving money, not carrying out regulated inspections, etc.). If the rules are not broken, the elevator is a long-lasting device. Of course, it is important to operate safely ”, explains the expert.

Residents are delayed until the last minute

Its users are informed about the critical condition of the elevators, but, according to M. Romaška, residents generally do not take immediate action, they are waiting for the last minute, when it is necessary to inevitably stop the elevator.

“Then all of a sudden there is dissatisfaction with why they weren’t informed in advance. Someone did not see, someone postponed the problem, there are several reasons. And then urgent action is needed ”, comments the interlocutor.

Why are residents delaying? Angelė Andriukaitienė, president of the 932 Apartment Owners Association, says convincing residents to repair or replace the elevator is a task that requires a lot of time and effort.

“I really have to admit that it is very difficult to convene the residents and secure a majority for decisions. I often hear the saying ‘everything is fine with that elevator, the chair has arrived here’ or ‘it is better to climb the stairs than to pay money to change the elevator. ‘Then I have to convince, explain to people, show official warnings that the elevator will definitely stop soon due to an emergency, present the offers from the elevator maintenance company. Not only that, it gets even complicated more because of the fact that many apartments are rented in old houses, making it difficult to “catch” the owners, “explains A. Andriukaitienė.

According to the president, residents generally only worry when the elevator stops: “When you have to go up the stairs, you suddenly become more active and wonder, ‘What are we going to do now?’

As Ms Romaška explains, when the elevator is stopped, residents or their representatives often organize a meeting. Discuss the possibilities of repairing or replacing the elevator. If a majority arrives at the meeting, one or another decision can be expected, otherwise decisions will be taken, so the active participation of the population in attending the meetings is very important.

“After the meeting, a representative of the residents is obliged to make a tender to select a company that will install an elevator. This usually takes between two and three weeks. After the competition, there is a written vote, which again takes around two weeks. If the decision to change the elevator is taken after the vote, the residents’ representative organizes the coordination and signing of the contract with the company that will install the elevator. Then the elevator is manufactured and installed, “says the interlocutor.

An overhaul or replacement of an elevator without waiting for the elevator to be banned generally takes anywhere from a few weeks to a month or two.

Can the elevator fall?

In all elevators, even without knowing their status, when they hear an unfamiliar sound, perhaps the neighbors’ greatest fear is getting stuck in the elevator or, worse, falling. M. Romaška, the head of the company that maintains the elevators, says that during the periodic technical inspection of the elevator, the inspection of the technical condition, the necessary repairs and the modernization work, there is almost no possibility that the elevator car will be fall with a person. Prof. Dr. V. Bučinskas. However, according to the scientist, there have been cases in Lithuania where the elevator car fell.

“For the elevator car to fall, the last case was in Baltupiai, but there was a technical crash, there were no passengers,” recalls the interlocutor.

Elevators have been installed in the new buildings, according to prof. Dr. V. Bučinsko, they are safer. In particular, as the researcher explains, they are equipped with remote alert systems. The construction of new elevator cars is also more modern.

Of course, there are more safety features in the new elevators. For example, the elevator machine reports in case of unnecessary vibrations. The construction of the cabins is different, it is simply more modern, the production methods allow them to do it. Furthermore, maintenance of modern equipment must be done less frequently ”, explains prof. Dr. V. Bučinskas.

Both experts agree that to prevent an emergency lift from causing an accident, it is necessary to operate it correctly, maintain it, repair it and, if the lift is in an emergency situation, sometimes even replace it with a new one, even at a high cost. . Otherwise, residents should forget about the elevator and use the stairs.