QHA REVIEW April 2017

TRAINING AND SAFETY
with Ross Tims
DO-IT-YOURSELF
MAINTENANCE
OR NOT?
QHA REVIEW | 42
DIY is a cultural thing in Australia especially amongst
blokes. This is like cranking up the BBQ. It’s a
manly thing to do. Wield a hammer and a spanner
with confidence. These days of course, it’s not just
restricted to blokes as times are changing. I picked up
my handyman skills initially from my father, as a lot of
you would’ve too. I also worked as a trade’s assistant
for a chippie for a few years so I consider myself to
be very handy indeed, he says self-assuredly. And if it
means saving a few bucks?
This is all well and good. However, there are things
you can and can’t do legally, and shouldn’t do,
especially if they have the potential to negatively
impact your business or put safety at risk. Now,
I get it that some people live outside the main cities
and towns and don’t have access to tradespeople
at the drop of a hat, or there may be a limited
budget this year on how much to spend on property
maintenance. This is especially so if you own
or lease an older hotel with aged electrical or
plumbing infrastructure.
The fact is, in our business, you’ve got to maintain
your property to keep it up and running and to a
certain standard. My advice would be to take the
safety option dependent upon the type of work that
needs to be done. You don’t want to be doing DIY
maintenance work on stuff that is illegal and can
come back to bite you on the backside later on, like
insurance implications if things go pear-shaped.
Unless you’re qualified, you shouldn’t be playing
around with any of the electrical wiring or fittings on
your premises apart from changing light bulbs, rewiring
fuses in your old circuit board or installing battery
operated smoke detectors, although not in budget
accommodation (must be hard-wired).
Under Queensland’s Electrical Safety Act 2002,
forbidden tasks include:
• Installing a new power point
• Replacing a light switch
• Replacing a batten holder with a new light fitting
• Repairing an appliance such as a heater
• Altering the location of an existing power point
• Replacing a light fitting with a ceiling fan
• Replacing a plug on the end of a lead
In terms of safety, the best thing you can do with your
electrical wiring is have a tradesperson install residual
current devices (safety switches) on all your electrical
circuits, if you haven’t already. Your old fuses, circuit
breakers and surge protectors don’t really cut the
mustard anymore. They protect appliances not people,
although they are still legal in most instances.
A person who does electrical work in Queensland
must have an electrical work licence. Licensed
electrical workers are required by law to ensure their
work is performed in accordance with legislative
requirements and any applicable codes of practice and
technical standards. It’s all about safety really.
Licensed electrical contractors are required to meet
specific insurance requirements including having a