Maintenance in our lives is oftentimes overlooked, taken for granted, or deemed unimportant. In the years I have been in the construction industry, I have seen the effects of deferred maintenance. But maintenance is not something solely concerning home ownership. Maintenance is an integral aspect to every part of our lives, from relationships, nutrition, exercise, mental and cognitive functioning, everything requires maintenance. In fact, maintenance has been on a decline in our society due to many reasons, but I would attribute a large portion of this decline to the prevalence of cheap objects, and a throwaway culture permeated from a replace mentality. While I acknowledge the many benefits of affordability and convenience that this materialistic culture provides, I would argue that we are giving up a certain mentality in our culture that values maintenance.
A home for example has many items that demand attention. Any first-time home buyer quickly becomes aware of this reality. Deferred maintenance may save time and money in the short term, but will end up costing more in the long term. Never changing the oil in your car will ruin it, decreasing the life span of this by tens if not hundreds of thousands of miles. Home maintenance, and the systems in your home, are no different.
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