Condominium living can be largely maintenance free, but when you go south for the winter, or are otherwise away, there are a few steps to peace of mind during your absence. The most important of these is that your condominium corporation should hold a backup key to your home. In an apartment condominium, for example, a rare instance of flooding would see a plumber let into your suite by the property manager or perhaps your condo Board chair. The alternative is a locksmith or a battering ram to open the door, with attendant delays and costs for repair---your costs.
My favorite example of the value of providing a key to your home is the babysitter who stepped out onto a high-rise apartment balcony to talk on her cell phone while the baby slept. A security bar fell into place as she slid the door closed, very firmly locking her out. At least she had a phone. The fire department responded and of course had no trouble opening the suite door. They simply used enormous wrenches and twisted the locks right off, leaving some impressive gouges in the door and two destroyed locks.
Some might fear that their privacy is in jeopardy with suite keys in someone else's hands. But those keys are locked away, either in a safe on-site, or at the offices of your building's property manager. They would only be used in a real emergency, and usually when police or firefighters are on the scene.
To make a water leak less likely when you're away, close shutoffs that serve your appliances, such as the laundry machine. In some apartment condominiums only the laundry and perhaps toilets are served by shutoffs, so there are other fixtures that you'll have to ignore. That's why you'll want a friend to drop in on your home every few days or week to look around for any issue that might be developing. Your insurance policy might require such visits anyway.
When your friend is attending to your suite, there's more to do than just water the plants. Every fixture should have some water run into it, so that the water "plug" in toilets and under sinks and tubs is refreshed. If that water evaporates entirely sewer gas will waft up into the home. As well, windows should be checked, as an open window can let in a lot of rainwater during one of Calgary's infamous summer cloudbursts.
Lastly, leaving contact information with the Manager can be helpful if there's an incident. In the rare event of a fire affecting your home, it's better to know about it before you arrive home, luggage in hand and groggy from your long travels.
Calgary Condominium Directory
