Elevator pit sump pump – Water in my elevator pit!

We have been seeing more and more water situations with buildings with older elevator systems. We have quite a few elevator pits that do not have sump pumps in pit in the Chicago area.  The biggest issue with the elevator pit is it typically is the lowest point in the building and water will find its way into our pit dependent on the water table in the area. What do you do if you get water in the elevator pit and you do not have a sump pump in it?  There are a few different solutions; inject pit walls, install drain tiles in the pit floor or the best solution is to install a sump pump.

 

[Water in the elevator pit]

[Plumbers pumped it out and prepped for coring]

[Popped the core out and ready for a sump]

[Installed sump - ready for next rain or snow melt]

What is the requirement for an elevator sump pump?  I’m glad you asked. 
In elevators provided with Fire Fighters Operation it is 3000gal/h per elevator.  One elevator 3000gal/h, 2 elevators 6000gal/h, etc.  The reason it is so high is because if there was a sprinkler in the pit, it would need to keep up with the sprinkler. 

What happens if I don’t address the water issue in the elevator pit?  You will begin to damage/corrode your elevator pit equipment, cylinder and piping which could lead to catastrophic failure if left unchecked and not addressed properly.  You will also have all the environmental issues that go along with having stagnant water below your elevator and pushing air to each floor through the gaps in the doors.  And then, there is the smell that comes with the water.  Below is a picture of what happens to hydraulic lines if they are under water.

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If you have any questions or would like additional information feel free to contact me at CraigZ@colleyelevator.com or 630-766-7230 ext. 107.

Also check us out on Instagram @Colleyelevator see what we have been up to.

Hydraulic Elevator Modernization – Forest Park, IL

 

In April of 1969 Colley Elevator ordered material for a building that was being built Forest Park, IL and Feguson Jenkins, Billy Williams, Ron Santo and Ernie Banks where on their way to their ill-fated season where they should have won the pennant race.  52 Years later we modernized the elevator and a few years prior the Cubs won the World Series.  Over the last 52 years we had a preventative maintenance relationship with the building and it finally was time to replace the elevator equipment.  A few great things about this; we had a great relationship with our customer for 52 years and the elevator equipment was still running the day we took it out of service to complete the elevator modernization. 

Existing elevator & project scope – The building owner had a few issues with the elevator system and we had prepared them over the years that the day was coming where they would have to replace the equipment, the day finally came.

[Old Machine room layout]

[New Machine room layout]

New equipment providers

Controllers – Smartrise Engineering

Power units – Delaware Elevator w/Maxton UC4 valve

Door operators – GAL MOVFR

Fixtures – Innovation Industries

Hydraulic elevator controller – The 1969 Elevator Research and Manufacturing[ERM] had seen its better days and was ready for replacement. Some minor replacements had been made over the years; a new electronic selector and a new starter.  

[Old ERM Controller]

[New Smartrise Engineering Controller]

Hydraulic elevator power unit – This was a Colley Elevator special, made in Franklin Park, IL.

[New Delaware Elevator power unit]

[New Maxton UC4 valve]

Door operators – The elevator had a GAL MOD on it prior to the modernization and replaced with a GAL MOVFR.  The door operator came out of the Bronx, NYC across the street from Yankee Stadium.  The New York Mets won the Pennant this year.  As a Chicagoan I'm not sure of the difference between the two teams, they both have pin stripes.

[New GAL MOVFR and fire resistant paint on the wood car top]

 

Elevator fixtures – The old EPCO fixtures are replaced with new code compliant Innovation Industries elevator fixtures.

[Old EPCO elevator car station]

[New Innovation Industries ADA compliant car station]

[Old first floor EPCO hall station]

[New Innovation Industries 1st floor hall station - ADA compliant]

 

Take away – The elevator modernization is a pretty vanilla one in the grand scheme of things.  But, this is what most elevator modernizations are, buildings with older elevator equipment who need to be educated prior to their elevator equipment conking out.  It is amazing to see some of the equipment we installed back in the late 1960’s still running.  I was just at a building in Skokie, IL that still has a 1966 Colley Elevator running.  I’m confident that the elevators we are currently installing, as an industry, will not last close to 52 years.  Way to go 1969 Team Colley.  The Chicago Cubs are still here, Colley Elevator is still here.  We have some legends on both teams.

Hey! Sign up for our mailing list!  We should be getting a monthly email going out sometime in Q1 of next year.

If you have any questions or would like additional information feel free to contact me at CraigZ@colleyelevator.com or 630-766-7230 ext. 107.

Also check us out on Instagram @Colleyelevator see what we have been up to.

Attention Property Managers/Building Owners - Application for Certificate of Operation – Elevator – Open Territory

We have “open territory” elevators in Illinois which always causes confusion for building owners and property managers because most of their elevators are in areas where the AHJ/City/Town do all the inspections and administration for certificate.  If your village/city/town has a local program, you don’t need to worry about this.  For those village/city/towns that do not have a local program please see how to complete the process.  The biggest challenge we have with "open territory" inspections is finding inspectors available to do the inspections. We have great inspection firms but there is a shortage of elevator inspectors currently.

Local program – A local program is a village/city/town that has signed up with an elevator inspection firm i.e. Thompson Elevator, Elevator Inspection Services, Citywide, Just Elevator, Cook County, Northern Illinois Inspections, Bureau Vistas etc.  The elevator inspector comes once or twice a year, inspects the conveyance and provides a certificate. Building owners/managers do not need to do very much.  Below is a link to a list of towns that have local programs. 

https://sfm.illinois.gov/content/dam/soi/en/web/sfm/sfmdocuments/documents/reports/elevator-safety/municipalityagreement-list.pdf

[Aurora is an example of a municipality that administers their own program]

Open territories – These are village/city/town’s that do not have a local program and will require you to hire an inspector and do paperwork.  The open territory certificate is administered by the State of Illinois. Typically the elevator contractor is involved in this.  Examples of open territories are Hinsdale, Western Springs, Geneva, St. Charles, Winnetka, Spring Grove, Harvey, Calumet Park, Crestwood, etc.  If you are unsure of who inspects your elevator, you can look inside for the certificate and if issued by the State of Illinois, you are in an open territory.

[This is a State of Illinois certificate - pay attention to expiration dates - the building owner is responsible for renewing the certificate]

Steps to get your certificate:

1.    Schedule an inspection with an elevator inspector[should be done well in advance of your anniversary date on your existing certificate].

a.    Make sure your CAT 1 testing is completed, the phone works, emergency lights function, etc

                                          i.    Typically your elevator company will schedule all of the inspections for you and since you should have an ongoing maintenance relationship with the company, your elevator should be in good condition.

2.    Get a report from the elevator inspector and if it passes, fill out the form linked below:

https://www2.illinois.gov/sites/sfm/SFMDocuments/Documents/ApplicationforCertificateofOperationAnnual.pdf

[State of Illinois forms - should be fairly easy to fill out for the building owner/rep]

3.    Get an invoice from the State of Illinois and pay it

4.    The State will send you a certificate to put in the elevator

Questions when you have open territory elevators – Call the elevator company you have a maintenance agreement with or call Colley Elevator!

Hey! Sign up for our mailing list!  Each month you will get some great info on Colley!  It is short and quick to run through, you’ll like it!

If you have any questions or would like additional information feel free to contact me at CraigZ@colleyelevator.com or 630-766-7230 ext. 107 or on our web page at www.colleyelevator.com

Also check us out on Instagram @Colleyelevator to see what we have been up to.

Otis Elevator Company recalls home elevators – U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

In a document released by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission on 12/17/20 Otis Elevator is recalling to inspect private residence elevators due to entrapment hazard; risk of serious injury or death to young children.  The entrapment and injury of small people has been an issue within the elevator industry/residential lift industry for many years.  If you have a residential lift Otis/Cemco or another brand, please have your service provider look at the distance between the car door and hatch door and resolve immediately if necessary. If you have an Otis/Cemco lift residential lift there is contact information on how to get this addressed or remedied through Otis.

 

For more information on the particulars of the danger you can review Colley Elevator’s blog post from 7/20/19.

http://colleyelevator.blogspot.com/2019/07/residential-lift-safety-washington-post.html

or

http://colleyelevator.blogspot.com/2014/11/residential-elevator-safety-have-you.html

Again, if you have a residential elevator you should contact a responsible service provider to inspect your lift to see if you need to have work completed to make sure it is in safe condition.

Hey! Sign up for our mailing list!  Each month you will get some great info on Colley!  It is short and quick to run through, you’ll like it!

If you have any questions or would like additional information feel free to contact me at CraigZ@colleyelevator.com or 630-766-7230 ext. 107 or on our web page at www.colleyelevator.com

Also check us out on Instagram @Colleyelevator see what we have been up to.

Year in reflection - Colley Elevator blog - 2020 Elevator blog

 

In 2019 I started with “What a year!”.  In 2020, that statement is echo’d for different reasons.   Pandemic, social unrest, political strife, fires, hurricanes, etc. Wow!  Through the roller coaster year we have had the opportunity to serve with some incredible people that help keep the wheels on.  For that.  Thank you!  As Colley Elevator enters our 113 year as an independent elevator contractor we reflect on a few things to tie up the end of the year.

Annual reflection – This year we saw our maintenance portfolio grow from 1650 to 1850 elevators under contract. This year we ordered/installed 50 Smartrise controller and 4 MCE controllers.  14 cylinders where installed, 30 power units, 45 door packages, 50+ fixture packages, a few machines and a few complete elevators.  We have a team of great people working on every project to make sure when the product gets here, we have minimum issues from engineering.  Colley went Back to Back for Best Contractor in the North and awarded Elevator Worlds Ellie in 2020.  Colley Elevator had a fundraiser and donated almost $6,000.00 to 2 food depositories and 2 hospitals[Doc, Nurse, support staff appreciation] in April. We have a great team over at Colley from the person who answers the phone to the elevator technician who executes and everyone in-between our average length of employment at Colley Elevator was 9.64 years.  I’m proud to work side by side with everyone here and that we have a culture of openness at Colley that helps get everyone done at a high level! Thank you to our coworkers, customers & suppliers for being great!

Elevator personnel during covid – There is something to be said for all the elevator mechanics and apprentices who went to work during the pandemic.  When you are working in the field with the public and moving from building to building it is very different than working in an office or home environment.  Much appreciation and credit for elevator personnel everywhere who showed up and did their job when there was a reason to go and hide.

[Faceshield and mask]

Project reflection – We did a lot of projects in 2020 and there are a few really cool things I would like to high light.  

[A Colley Elevator from 1967]

One thing is any time we recapture an original Colley Elevator installation and complete a modernization with the building.  It is always a cool feeling to know that we are still around, still doing great work and getting the opportunity to replace equipment Colley installed in the 1960s or 1970s.  The picture is one from a building in Lakeview that we modernized which Colley Elevator installed in 1967, this building owner was grossly mishandled by a multinational firm who installed the wrong size power unit and couldn't get the elevator to run correctly after, which is why the building owner called us.  A bonus to this project was that we ended up doing a building right across the street a month later. 

[1/2 way done Canton Elevator package]

For the last 20 years we worked with the Lincoln Park Zoo at their Admin building, about 5 years ago they gave us a shot to take care of all their elevators.  This year we got a chance to install a new elevator in the Lion House renovation.  We do our best to be dedicated to our customers and it is wonderful when our customers remember us and give us an opportunity.  

[New elevator in a very old elevator hoistway]

We also have installed our first traction MRL this year, it has been a memorable installation and credit the the project team who has been working there to make an old elevator shaft work with a new MRL.  

Blog reflection – 46 posts in 2020[that is a lot of words, pictures and time], over 30,000 views, over 134,520 views in the blog’s history.  Getting new material every week is tough but we had some great feature on obsolete elevator controllers and Peelle Elevator Company.  Going back in the last year and looking at all the posts this year is pretty incredible how wild this year has been.  There were weeks I would come into the weekend looking for something to write about and it had been so exhausting dealing with covid or riots or whatever I felt I had gone 10 rounds with Sugar Ray Lenard. Here is to 2021 being a more positive year.

Thank you for everyone who took the time to read the blog.  My advice for 2021 is to make take ownership in something in your life and strive to be successful; Job, school, parenting, start a blog, podcast, read more, become a better deer hunter, computer programmer, exercise, whatever.  We all have more potential than just skating by a taking someone else's oxygen and spend less time on social media.  And yes, life isn't fair, do your best and go get it!  And while you are at it, help someone else, you'll feel great when you do.

Hey! Sign up for our mailing list! 

If you have any questions or would like additional information feel free to contact me at CraigZ@colleyelevator.com or 630-766-7230 ext. 107.

Also check us out on Instagram @Colleyelevator see what we have been up to.