What is the difference between preventive and reactive maintenance?
Preventive maintenance is work you plan: cleaning filters, testing alarms, servicing pumps. Reactive maintenance is work the building forces on you: the leak, the dead AC, the tripped breaker.
Every property does both. The goal is to move as much work as possible into the planned column. Planned work happens on quiet mornings, with the right part in hand. Reactive work tends to happen on your busiest night, with a guest standing at the desk.
A checklist is how you make planned work happen. Without one, maintenance depends on someone remembering. With one, each check has a time, an owner and a record.
Who does maintenance in a small property?
Most small properties do not have an engineering team. They have a mix of people, and the checklist works when each one knows their part.
- Housekeeping is your early-warning system. Attendants are in every room every day, so they spot drips, dead bulbs, loose handles and smells first. Our guide to what housekeeping is in a hotel shows how that team is organised.
- A handyman or technician, on staff or on call, fixes small faults and runs most of the weekly and monthly checks.
- Specialist vendors handle AC servicing, pool equipment, generators, electrical work and fire equipment. They usually work on a contract or a schedule.
- The owner or manager decides what can wait, approves spending, and keeps the yearly calendar.
The simplest rule: whoever finds a fault reports it the same day, with the room number and a photo. Housekeeping should never be told "that's not your job" when they mention a problem.
What goes on the daily maintenance checklist?
Daily checks are quick looks, mostly done during normal rounds. Split them between housekeeping and whoever opens the property.
- Guest rooms during cleaning: lights, AC cooling and noise, TV and remote, taps and toilet flush, hot water, door lock and safe.
- Leaks and damp: under sinks, around AC units, on ceilings after rain.
- Public areas: lobby lights, stair handrails, loose tiles, wet floors.
- Escape routes: exit doors open freely and corridors are clear.
- Pool, if you have one: water clear, chemical levels checked as your pool supplier or local rules require.
- Open faults: yesterday's reported problems are fixed, or have a date.
What goes on the weekly checklist?
Weekly checks go a little deeper. A handyman can usually cover them in one morning.
- Unused rooms and outlets: run taps and showers in rooms that have been empty. The World Health Organization lists flushing unused taps weekly as one way to reduce stagnant water, which helps limit Legionella bacteria. See the WHO fact sheet on Legionellosis.
- Drains: slow showers and basins, smells from floor drains.
- Doors and windows: hinges, closers, locks, sliding door tracks and fly screens.
- Exterior: outdoor lights, gutters clear of leaves, paths and steps safe.
- Laundry machines: lint filters, hoses and drain pipes.
- Backup power: if you have a generator, run it as its maker advises.
What goes on the monthly checklist?
Monthly checks cover safety equipment and the systems that wear out quietly.
- Smoke alarms: test every alarm. The US National Fire Protection Association advises testing smoke alarms at least once a month and replacing each alarm 10 years after its manufacture date. See NFPA smoke alarm guidance.
- AC units: clean or check filters and condensate drains, following the maker's manual. In hot, humid places, these clog faster than you think.
- Water temperature: the WHO advises keeping hot water above 50°C, which needs water leaving the heater at 60°C or more, and cold water below 25°C, ideally below 20°C. Check a few outlets with a thermometer.
- Fire extinguishers and exit signs: in place, visible, not blocked, and within their service date.
- Damp and mould: bathroom ceilings, wardrobe backs and window frames.
- A rotating room check: pick a few rooms each month and check everything, from curtain tracks to the bathroom sealant.
What should happen every quarter and every year?
These are the bigger jobs, usually done by specialist vendors. Put them in a yearly calendar so they do not slip.
- Every quarter: AC deep service by a technician, pool equipment service, pest control visit, water tank inspection and cleaning plan.
- Before the rainy season: roof, gutters, drains and window seals.
- Every year: electrical check by a licensed electrician, fire equipment service as your local fire authority requires, generator service, furniture and mattress review, repainting where needed.
- Every year, on paper: review your vendor contracts, emergency phone numbers and the list of spare parts you keep in stock.
Use the quiet season for the big jobs. A room closed for repair costs less when you would not have sold it anyway.
Fault found: can the room still be sold tonight?
This is the decision that links maintenance to money. Make it the same way every time. The table gives a starting point. Adjust it to your own standards.
| Fault type | Example | Can the room be sold tonight? | Who fixes it | What to record |
|---|
| Safety risk | Exposed wiring, gas smell, broken lock, failed smoke alarm | No. Close the room now | Licensed vendor or technician | Fault, photo, time closed |
| Comfort failure | AC not cooling, no hot water, toilet will not flush | No, unless fixed before the guest arrives | Technician | Fault, photo, fix time |
| Visible defect | Stained ceiling, cracked tile, torn curtain | Yes, if safe, but plan the fix | Handyman | Fault, photo, planned date |
| Minor issue | Dead bulb, loose towel rail, dripping tap | Yes, fix during the next clean | Handyman or housekeeping | Fault and date fixed |
| Recurring fault | Same AC fails for the third time | Only after a proper repair, not a quick fix | Specialist vendor | Every repeat, with dates |
If the answer is "no", the room must stop selling on every channel at once, not just on the desk's board. That process lives in our out-of-service guide.
How do you report and fix a fault, step by step?
A clear flow keeps faults from getting lost between shifts. Here is one that fits a small team.
- Spot it. Anyone who finds a fault stops and looks closer.
- Photograph it. One clear photo with the room number in the message.
- Report it. Send it to one agreed place, such as the system or one group chat. Not a private message.
- Decide on the room. Use the table above: sell, sell with a note, or close.
- Assign it. Name who fixes it and by when.
- Fix and test it. The person who fixes it tests it, then housekeeping checks the room.
- Reopen the room. Only when the test passes and the room is clean.
- Record it. Date, fault, fix and cost, so repeats are easy to spot.
Repeats are the most useful part of the record. If the same complaint keeps coming back in reviews, our guide to fixing a recurring review complaint shows how to find the cause.
What maintenance mistakes do small properties make?
Most problems come from the same few habits:
- Waiting for guests to report faults. By then, the stay is already damaged.
- Fault reports in private chats. The owner knows, the technician does not, and the desk keeps selling the room.
- Quick fixes on repeat faults. The same AC gets topped up three times instead of being repaired once.
- No spare parts. A missing fuse or bulb keeps a room closed for a day.
- Big jobs in high season. Repairs that could wait end up closing rooms on your best dates.
- No record. Without dates and costs, you cannot tell a bad unit from bad luck.
How does Kiyo help with maintenance?
Kiyo is not a maintenance tool, but it holds the two things maintenance depends on: the rooms and the team.
When a room cannot be sold, you can set it out of order or out of service for the repair dates, where Housekeeping is switched on for your property. Connected channels then update automatically, and that room type's availability drops by 1. Kiyo works with 75+ booking channels on every plan.
Every plan includes unlimited team seats, so your handyman can have a login too. On Pro and higher plans, team conversations keep fault reports and photos in one shared place rather than in private chats. The Business plan adds the Housekeeping module for properties that want the cleaning team and the desk working from the same rooms.
Kiyo is live and open to all properties, and we set it up with you over WhatsApp or a demo call. Pricing starts from Rp40k per room per month; the pricing page slider gives your exact figure.
Frequently asked questions
Checks grouped by frequency (daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, yearly), each with an owner and a record. Cover rooms, water, power, AC, safety equipment, the exterior and any pool or generator.
Housekeeping looks at every room daily during cleaning. On top of that, give each room a full check on a rotating plan, a few rooms each month, so every room is covered several times a year.
Housekeeping spots faults, a handyman or technician fixes small ones and runs routine checks, and specialist vendors handle AC, electrical, pool and fire equipment. The owner approves spending and keeps the yearly plan.
The US National Fire Protection Association advises testing smoke alarms at least once a month, and replacing each alarm 10 years after its manufacture date. Follow any local fire rules too.
Housekeeping cleans and resets rooms and reports what is wrong. Maintenance fixes and services the building and its equipment. In a small property, the two teams must share one fault-reporting channel.
Yes, if it is safe and the guest's comfort is not affected, such as a dead bulb or a stained tile. Fix it at the next clean. Close the room for anything that affects safety, cooling, hot water or the toilet.
Add the pool, garden, kitchen appliances, outdoor lighting and water pumps. Villas often sit empty between stays, so run taps and check for damp and pests before each arrival.
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