L i g h t i n g   M a i n t e n a n c e

Q. What can our association do to make sure our common area lighting is properly maintained?

A. Some years ago an association hired a handyman to inspect its common-area lighting.  One night a car hit a pedestrian in an area of the property where the lights were out.  Naturally, the injured pedestrian sued the association and won a huge judgment when it was proven the lights had been out for more than a month.

A board member of another association took on the responsibility of changing common area light bulbs, but he did it only occasionally, and his association was held liable when someone was robbed because light bulbs were out for too long.

These liability issues could have been avoided if only the association had hired a professional lighting company to conduct regular lighting inspections and change bulbs as necessary.

The cost of such inspections is actually quite low, often no more than $90 per month for bimonthly visits to a moderately sized property.  And hiring a licensed contractor to maintain your lighting can help shift the responsibility for liability to the contractor and its insurance in the event of a problem.

In addition to regularly inspecting your property's lighting, a professional lighting expert can assist an association and its property manager in determining whether additional lighting fixtures are needed in dark areas, what types of new fixtures will be most beneficial and the specific locations to place such additional fixtures for maximum benefit.

A lighting inspection can also help to tell an association whether there may be a long term benefit to updating or retrofitting your common area lighting or whether other lighting problems need to be addressed.

For example, a 9-watt fluorescent tube uses about the same amount of electrical energy as a 60-watt incandescent light bulbs.  Changing out fixtures may result in a huge energy saving over the long haul.

New available lighting materials such as fiberglass and composites may also help to solve problems with lighting systems that may now have problems with corrosion or electrolysis.

Judicious installation and use of photocells (which automatically turn lights on at sunset and off at daybreak), whether or not in combination with time clocks (which turn lights off at a specific time) may save labor costs (although changing clocks is usually included as a  service in a lighting maintenance contract).

And a reputable lighting expert will also be able to change tennis court or street lights using a high lift when needed.  A professional lighting expert with a California contractors license is the best way to keep lighting costs down, keep your property well-lighted and safe and limit your liability.

MARK SUTTON is a member of the San Diego Chapter of the Community Associations Institute and is president of ResCom Services, a San Diego county property services company.  Readers can get their condominium questions answered by calling the Community Associations Institute at 619-299-1376 or sending questions to: Condominiums, Homes, San Diego Union-Tribune, P.O. Box 191, San Diego, CA 92112-4106.

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