Gym Maintenance: How to Care For Your Gym Equipment

There are few things that are annoying to a gym user, and one of them is seeing the "out of service" sign on equipment and machines. When most of the equipment of the gym is unusable, members may feel cheated since they paid for full membership for the right to use the equipment. Gym maintenance, therefore, is a golden rule to keep your customers happy and loyal. 

Malfunctioned gym equipment is also a great inconvenience for your business because it may mean fewer customers and less profit. Worse, it can lead to serious injuries to one of your members.

To avoid such a thing from happening, a gym must have proper maintenance and care protocol in order to continue business without interruptions. If you're new to the gym business or simply does not have an SOP (standard operating procedures) for gym equipment maintenance, then we hope to be able to shed a light on how you can start off with creating one. 

Types of gym maintenance

There are two types of gym maintenance: corrective and preventive. Corrective maintenance requires the expertise of gym equipment engineers. This means you will need to contact the manufacturer for the promised after-sales service, including gym maintenance. On the other hand, preventive maintenance is scheduled and planned to avoid any problem to arise in the future. It also helps extend the life expectancy of each equipment to give you a return of your investment. 

When it comes to making sure nothing breaks, one must always choose the preventive measures. With preventive gym maintenance, you are responsible for 80% of the work, as a gym owner. 

5 Gym Equipment Maintenance Tips

Here are five practical tips to keep your equipment in perfect condition and for the quality of service in your business does not decline.

1. Make sure your gym equipment is clean

People go to the gym to exercise, and that involves sweating. Assign several shifts a day for basic appliance cleaning. That way, if a machine needs a deeper cleaning or some small repair, you'll be able to notice it right away.

Another very common practice is to lend small towels to the users so that they themselves take care of cleaning the equipment before and after use.

A disease that spreads through your devices is never a good sign. Disinfecting them from time to time can help avoid this situation.

These prevention tips will help keep all your appliances in good condition and prevent you from spending on expensive repairs. Also, your gym will have an excellent reputation among members, which is always good for your business.

2. Make a note of which appliances are most frequently used

Cardio and resistance devices are often the most commonly used equipment in the gym. Set up a calendar for the devices to be checked regularly for damage. This will prevent unexpected injuries to your members.

3. Check the equipment manuals

In the manuals, you will find all the information you need to know what kind of maintenance a specific type of gym equipment needs. If you have any doubt about it,  contact the provider or manufacturer for after-sales corrective and preventive maintenance advice and services.

4. Regularly lubricate or oil machines

Even the best treadmills and other weight training machine equipment need a little lubrication from time to time. Consider the same for ellipticals, bicycles, or any other device that is in constant motion.

5. Specialised training 

Personal trainers should be aware of the correct operation of machines and recognise when someone is not using them properly. Specialised training will enable them to carry out a regular and relevant check of the equipment.

Similarly, a brief guide with some simple rules for their use will also serve to make the performance and maintenance of gym machines better.

How to do a thorough gym cleaning?

Gyms are spaces in which a large number of people exercise daily. Gym cleaning should be thorough. This process is fundamental for the development of the activity of a gym, it is not only a question of hygiene or health, but a lack of cleanliness in a gymnasium can also have economic repercussions in the accounting of the company.

In this article, we'll explain the importance of cleaning gyms, physiotherapy centres or other sports centres. This will also include the frequency with which you must carry it out depending on the type of gym. And finally, we will talk about the parts or areas that constitute a gym and the maintenance that must be carried out for each equipment. 

Importance of thorough cleaning of gyms

Its importance lies in the need to preserve a hygienic and healthy environment for all those who use this type of facility. Due to the nature of the activity carried out in gyms, the risk of virus transmission or skin diseases is higher than in other facilities. Therefore, the importance and cleanliness of gyms are fundamental.

How often should gyms be cleaned

In addition to knowing how to clean gyms thoroughly, it is necessary to be clear about the importance of doing it regularly.

A gym is a space that must remain clean to avoid the bad image of the gym and the health problems that the lack of it can entail. But how often should the cleaning of sports facilities be carried out? And what does it depend on?

The daily influx of people: the frequency of cleaning of this type of facility may vary depending on the number of people using the space on a daily basis. 

The use of facilities: Another factor that determines the periodicity of this process is the use of these facilities: machines, rooms, toilets, showers, etc.

To know how often the cleaning of sports facilities must be carried out, you must know their influx and use, but generally, this type of cleaning is usually done daily and more than once a day.

During the day, it is important to carry out a superficial cleaning (machines, spaces etc.). Still, after closing the doors of the gym, it is essential to carry out a deep cleaning especially with toilets and showers for hygiene-sake.

Sports facilities, regardless of their size, usually have certain areas in common. Gyms have machine rooms and collective classes, changing rooms and shower areas, swimming pool, etc..

How to clean the changing rooms and showers

Cleaning changing rooms: The changing rooms of a gymnasium are one of the busiest areas. It could be said that it is an area through which all gym users pass, an obligatory stop after doing sport. In this environment, it is essential to preserve cleanliness as people who have just made a physical effort and sweat are mixed. For that reason in the changing rooms, it is not worth with general cleaning, the total disinfection must prevent the appearance of fungi and other types of setbacks.

Cleaning of lockers: Lockers must also be taken into account in changing rooms. These accumulate dust and dirt from used garments, wet, etc..

The disinfection of changing rooms requires the use of specific products that are harmless to people's health.

Cleaning of showers: After physical activity or sports, gym users go through the showers. Eliminating sweat and body dirt is essential to continue with your day-to-day. This contributes to making it one of the most critical and careful areas to be clean.

It is one of the areas that should be cleaned more thoroughly. The cleaning of showers should include the cleaning of faucets, screens, shower trays and other elements. Disinfection is mandatory.

Both changing rooms and showers are ideal for the development of fungi and bacteria as this is an environment that comes into direct contact with water, humidity and high temperatures.

Collective rooms and machine room

Cleaning of sports halls in gymnasiums: The machine rooms or classrooms in which the group classes given by the monitors take place are spaces in which a large number of people exercise at the same time, and therefore dirt is spread. To clean these rooms properly, dust and surface dirt must be removed by sweeping. To remove sweat and stains from other athletes, it will be necessary to scrub the entire surface.

Cleaning of machines: The cleaning of the machines in this room must be carried out in addition to preserving hygiene and by being exposed to microorganisms, to preserve the machines. Gymn machines have a certain useful life that can be extended through proper cleaning and maintenance.

When to clean gyms in big cities

In Australia, the fitness industry has grown more followers over the years, which is why in large cities such as Sydney, we find a number of gyms popping up everywhere.

The quite economical price of these, together with the fact that more and more gyms are opened, means that approximately 25% of the population of a large city uses gyms. Some even take advantage of them and go more than once a day depending on the operating hours.

So if in general, these businesses operate from 07 am (some chains even before) until 10 pm, and open from Mondays to Sundays, the cleaning of the facilities will have to be carried out early in the mornings or late in the evenings.

Generally, all sports facilities are cleaned when they are closed, as otherwise bad smells and humidity accumulate in the environment. So in places where there is high traffic of users, gyms are often cleaned multiple times a day.

Tips for maintaining a treadmill

Treadmills are one of the most popular machines for weight loss training. If you have treadmills in your gym or even at home, pay close attention to this article. Here are some tips for the maintenance of treadmills, the most common breakdowns, and what you should do to avoid these breakdowns.

Cleaning and lubricating: this should not be done every day, but at least once every two weeks or at least once a month (depending on the condition of the treadmill) should be cleaned and lubricated.

Check the engine: after using the treadmills, it is recommended that you check if the engine has overheated. Usually, it's hot, but if you notice it's too hot, you should get more ventilation, so it doesn't burn.

Do not leave the machine on: whenever you finish using the machine, you must turn it off; therefore, you should only turn it on when you are going to use it.

Beware of silicone: it is necessary to remove any excess silicone that may have been placed on the treadmill. Silicone is not administered to the surface, but between the tread and the board on which it slides. In other words, internally.

These tips apply to both used treadmills and new treadmills. So don't neglect the fact that the treadmill is new and require no maintenance for a long time. This is what most gym owners are commonly mistaken. 

Make sure to follow these gym maintenance tips so your equipment lasts long and eventually will earn you a return of your investment. Of course, it is also best if you seek the advice of the equipment manufacturer and request after-sales service.

With the proper attention and planning, gym maintenance doesn’t have to be difficult. Just make sure you give your investment the attention it needs to last for as long as possible. Shopping for newer gym equipment and sports gear is also a form of gym maintenance to attract more gym members. 

Morgan Sports Australia specialises in all kinds of sporting goods for functional fitness, weight lifting, and more. For your gym, we offer a wide range of products to choose from. The products are affordable with a wholesale price, which you are free to sell to your gym members at a discounted price.