Legionella bacteria are commonly found in domestic and commercial water systems. Given the right conditions, namely temperatures between 20°C and 45°C and stagnant water in unmanaged water systems, can cause potentially fatal Legionnaires’ disease.
It is therefore imperative that businesses carry out routine monitoring and maintenance of their hot and cold-water systems in order to comply with Health and Safety regulations to control the risks and safeguard staff, customers, contractors and visitors to their premises.
As part of an ongoing maintenance programme to ensure you are fully compliant with HSE regulations, our engineers will visit your site and carry out monthly checks of the distribution temperatures of your hot and cold-water systems. We will also monitor the systems and ensure that they are flushed out regularly and water storage tanks are cleaned or drained periodically as required to check for debris or signs of corrosion.
As a statutory requirement under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, businesses which control premises or water systems at work are bound by law to carry out Legionella risk assessments every two years in order to protect employees and the public from the potential risks associated with Legionnaires’ disease. Risk assessments should be thorough and include an evaluation of any potential risks in your building’s water system.
As Legionella risk assessment providers, our assessors will visit your premises and carry out a detailed inspection of each room, taking water temperatures, tracing pipework and checking system materials are compliant with the latest water fittings regulations. We will also take photos of the site and these will accompany the final risk assessment which will detail your overall risk rating and include a summary of findings and recommendations to ensure that you can take any steps necessary to keep compliant.
Any suspected contamination in tanks or pipes will require a full cleaning and disinfection of the water system. Contamination can occur during or following an outbreak or suspected outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease or during maintenance or repair work. Our engineers are fully trained to carry out thorough clean and disinfection services to hot and cold-water systems using methods and procedures in accordance with ACoP L8.
Full disinfection involves draining the tank and cleaning throughout with appropriate chemicals as required. Full sanitisation of pipework and working parts is also carried out as necessary and once the work is completed, tests are then done for TVC, e-coli, coliform and Legionella to give you peace of mind that all areas have been covered. We will also issue you with a disinfection certificate and results of the samples for your records.
Microbiological analysis water testing plays an important role in the maintenance of domestic and commercial water systems including drinking water, hot and cold systems, cold water storage tanks, swimming pools and spas. Our engineers are fully trained to take accurate samples of the water at your building or premises and these may be tested with our on-site sampling service or sent to our laboratory for water analysis to accurately identify the presence or absence of bacteria.
Once the laboratory analysis is complete, we will send you a full report with results and explanations plus our recommendations of what the results mean for you and your responsibilities towards the people that come into contact with your water systems.
