Legionella Risk Assessments
What is Legionellas Disease?
Legionella’s Disease is caused by breathing in small droplets of water containing the bacteria. This disease is commonly found in places such as hotels, hospitals, offices and schools where the bacteria have contaminated the water supply. It is essential to follow proper guidelines and protocols to ensure a safe and healthy working environment for everyone. Landlords too have many responsibilities when letting residential and commercial properties to tenants. While it would be nice to think every property would be continually let, there are likely to be void periods where properties will stand empty between tenants, sometimes for several weeks or longer. This provides a good opportunity for legionella bacteria to multiply in the buildings water systems – sometimes to dangerous levels.
The Health and Safety at Work Act of 1974 is a crucial piece of legislation that covers the risks associated with Legionella bacteria. It is essential for employers or landlords of any building or premises to understand the importance of carrying out a thorough assessment to identify and assess the potential risks posed by exposure to legionella. This legal duty requires employers and landlords to take appropriate precautions in order to prevent or control the risk of exposure to these harmful bacteria.
What we do
Water temperature is a vital element in the fight against legionella bacteria. And this is why it so important to ensure the water temperature in your system is kept below 20 degrees C on your cold water systems and stored above 60 degrees C on hot water systems. Our team at Circle Property Assessments are qualified and experienced in conducting general water temperature testing. We understand that testing the water temperature can be a hassle for many individuals which is why we offer this service to take the burden off your shoulders. Our testing procedure is simple and straightforward, using a legionella thermometer and the results are instant. Let us handle this for you and give you the assurance you deserve.
The law is clear that if you are a landlord and rent out your property (or even a room within your own home) then you have legal responsibilities to ensure the health and safety of your tenant by keeping the property safe and free from health hazards. There is a requirement for landlords of both domestic and business premises to assess the risks from exposure to Legionella to their tenants.
During a Legionella risk assessment, the Legionella thermometer tip is held facing down under the running water flow for two minutes and the temperature is recorded. In the case where the temperature is not below 20 degrees C within the 2 minutes, details of the findings will be reported to person responsible to take remedial action.
