We have all experienced that sinking feeling when you walk in a building and head toward the elevator and see that out of service sign. That feeling of annoyance is fleeting once you have left the building and gone about your day.

Now, imagine if it were your home elevator that was broken. That feeling of annoyance would sit with you until it is repaired. Along with that very real emotion that comes with feeling like you are cut off from a portion of your home. Well, with that in mind here are a few simple things to keep in mind with your home system. Not doing these things will help keep it running smoothly for the extent of its life.

Running At Overcapacity

Having an elevator may seem like an easy way to take heavy loads from one floor to the next. Yet one of the fastest ways to shorten the life of your home elevator is by running your system overcapacity. This forces every part of your elevator to work harder to make the lift from floor to floor.

If you run your elevator overcapacity regularly you will likely begin to notice that it will start to run at uneven speeds.

Holding The Door

Do not interfere with the doors of your elevator as they close. Blocking your elevator doors might seem like a good idea to “hold” the elevator to get everything or everyone in the lift. But in fact with many newer elevator lift systems you can “time out” the elevator by holding the doors open. The resulting “time out” will then need to have a mechanic restart the system. If you need to keep the doors open longer than programed use the DOOR OPEN button that should be located on the selector panel.

Shenanigans

So, we all have been there as a kid and likely many of us have as adults as well we are in the elevator and it is descending to the ground floor. Just as we sense it is about to come to a stop we jump up and down. Well, it sure sounds fun and it was when were kids but unfortunately this action is very hard on your elevators lifetime as it puts stress on numerous parts of the lift. So, don’t bow to the temptation yourself or allow other people using the elevator to.

Forcing The Doors

Lastly it may seem like common sense but never try to pry open the doors while in the elevator. If you do manage to force the door open you can risk injuring yourself. Additionally, by forcing doors open you can damage the system resulting in the need for time consuming unnecessary repair to your elevator.