This study examined the challenges of building maintenance in Nigeria. The study embarked on physical inspection of the facilities of some public and private buildings, identified defects in the buildings, determined the causes of the defect and proffered remedies for them. Data for the study were collected through well-structured questionnaire administered to building industry professionals. Data collected were analyzed using frequency distribution tables and relative significance index. The findings revealed that in the level of dilapidation of services in the facilities, kerosene cooking system ranked first (68% significance) followed by flush toilet (66%), while the pail system ranked least with (50%) significance. Considering the severity of defects in facilities, peeling of wall surface ranked first (50.8% significance) while foundation failure and sagging of beams were ranked least with (42.8%). The causes of defects in the facilities were investigated and the use of untested or inferior materials (56.8%) was the most devastating factor. Availability of qualified and competent construction industry professionals was generally believed to be the most significant factor that would impact on the drive to achieve quality of maintenance operations in Nigeria.
Keywords: Building maintenance, Building systems, Defects, Dilapidation, facilities
