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4 Ways to Maintain Gym Equipment or Facilities

Gym maintenance can be a hassle, especially with older machines, but it's essential. Faulty or poorly operating equipment can be a liability for commercial facilities and may leave home gym users without the ability to get in their daily workouts. Instead of waiting until things start to break down, read on to find out about four ways to maintain gym equipment that can help to prevent problems.

1. Check the Manuals

The manuals that come with gym equipment should be the owners' first go-to regarding cleaning schedules, preventative maintenance, and repairs. Those owners who plan to take on DIY maintenance and repair tasks may want to go one step further, though, and read through some guides online. Even a tricep bar guide can be helpful if things just don't seem to be going right with a workout.

2. Set Up a Clear Maintenance Schedule

The manual should also include the manufacturer's suggested maintenance schedule. Manufacturers' warranties may also stipulate that equipment owners must schedule professional maintenance at predetermined times. Check the fine print to see if that's the case. If so, consider it one more compelling reason to stay on top of routine maintenance.

Of course, every gym is different, so a machine that might require frequent professional maintenance in a commercial establishment could go years without breaking down at home as long as its owner takes basic precautions. When determining a customized maintenance plan, take factors such as the age of the machine, existing wear and tear, and current frequency of use into account.

3. Keep Everything Clean

There has been a lot of discussion in recent years about the importance of keeping gym equipment clean to protect its users from diseases like COVID-19. However, the fact that the worst days of the coronavirus pandemic are in the past doesn't mean owners can stop cleaning and disinfecting equipment.

Keeping equipment clean is not just about keeping users healthy and safe, although that should obviously be at the forefront of a commercial gym owner's mind. It's also about keeping the equipment in good operating condition. Establishing a cleaning schedule is a must for anyone who owns a commercial gym since it's the best way to stay compliant with industry and brand standards, but home gym owners can also benefit from taking this approach, especially when it's combined with a service checklist.

4. Stay on Top of Software Updates

This last tip for gym equipment maintenance is one that only applies to modern equipment, but it often goes overlooked. It's important for gym owners to pay attention to required software updates. Treadmills, stationary bicycles, and other cardio equipment have become incredibly technologically advanced in recent years and now incorporate software-driven systems that measure speeds, keep track of heart rates, simulate routes with different difficulty levels, and more. If any of these features need to be updated, it can cause functional issues with the machine, so when that happens with no mechanical cause, turn to the software side of things.

There Are No Excuses