Schools across America were closed for a very long time because of the COVID-19 pandemic. After reopening, they have been running well so far. As we approach the year’s end, schools are about to close down again for the holidays.
The holidays give schools the chance to make some much-needed renovations inside the campus. After all, when else can schools get the whole campus to themselves without having to worry about kids running around? Thus, the holiday season is the perfect time to make all those fixes and renovations on campus.
So, if you are running a school or are part of the school committee in any way, here are a few fixes and renovations that you should work on before reopening in 2022.
Start with the Front Lawn
The school’s front lawn is the first thing students and their parents will see once they return to school in 2022. Hence, that is the first place you might want to start your renovations.
Taking care of a lawn is difficult. When you have hundreds of kids roaming around all day on your lawn, taking care of it becomes even more hectic. During the holiday season, you better get the main renovations done there. Hence, now is the time to plant or cut trees and grass, repaint the fences, add decorations and so on. After school reopens, ensure that the caretakers are keeping it clean and cutting the grass once a week.
Check the School Furniture
When checking the school furniture, always start with the class chairs. Each seat needs to be as comfortable for your students as possible. Look at the chair legs next. Install chair glides on those legs if you haven’t already. A high-quality glide will have a nylon base. Add glides to all the chairs so each chair leg will be properly balanced. Besides balance, this also ensures floor protection. Students can also drag the chairs around smoothly without making too much noise.
Then, check the desks. They too should have a proper balance. Watch out for nails sticking out of the desks or chairs if they are wooden ones.
Look for Damages and Leaks on the Walls
Fixing the building’s walls is a mammoth task. It is also the most time-consuming one. Identifying the problems and then fixing them could take weeks. Hence, the sooner you can start this process, the better.
Start by identifying problematic walls. You should be looking for cracks and leaks especially. The formation of cracks is not just a safety hazard, but can get your school into legal problems as well. Cracks are somewhat easier to repair than leaks. That is especially true if you are dealing with cracks on plaster walls.
In case of leaks, there is a lot more to do. First, you have to identify the source of the leakage. That means you must look for a probable water source from where the water is leaking into the walls. After you work that out, you have to check the wall itself. Look for any electrical wiring that the water leaks might have damaged. Replace the wiring completely if you do find it near a leakage. Finally, replaster the wall where the water was leaking onto.
Sometimes, the leaks might not be fully visible. That means you will not see water streams running down the walls. In that case, you have to feel the wall and see if it is damp. Look for molds or musty smells. These are also signs of water leakage.
Repaint the Campus
After you are done with all the above, it is time to add a new coat of paint on campus. Do not leave anything unattended when it comes to repainting.
Start with the interior. Keep the classrooms as bright as possible and avoid dark colors like violet or pink. Yellow is not that good of an option either. Instead, opt for white or light grey. Shades of light blue will look great too. While doing the interior, you can repaint the lockers as well. After the inner walls are done, repaint the exterior. Keep the colors as vibrant as you can.
You will be done with the renovation once you have completed all this. After that, the school will look as good as new and will be ready to welcome back the students come 2022.