Top 12 Building Maintenance Skills to Put on Your Resume

In today's job market, the right building maintenance skills can swing doors open. Hiring teams want proof you can keep systems humming, fix problems before they blow up, and do it safely. Below, twelve high-impact skills worth highlighting on a resume—practical, current, and grounded in what facilities actually need.

Building Maintenance Skills

1. HVAC Systems
2. Plumbing Repairs
3. Electrical Troubleshooting
4. Carpentry Techniques
5. Welding Skills
6. Building Automation (e.g., BACnet)
7. Energy Management (e.g., Siemens Desigo)
8. Safety Compliance
9. Locksmithing
10. Painting Techniques
11. Groundskeeping
12. Preventive Maintenance

1. HVAC Systems

HVAC—heating, ventilation, and air conditioning—keeps interiors stable, breathable, and comfortable. It’s the backbone of occupant comfort and indoor air quality.

Why It's Important

Proper HVAC control stabilizes temperature and humidity, filters contaminants, and protects occupants and assets. Done right, it also slashes energy spend and reduces equipment wear.

How to Improve HVAC Systems Skills

Blend routine care with smarter controls and thoughtful upgrades:

1. Regular maintenance: Replace or clean filters, check belts and bearings, clear drains, and verify airflow. Document readings (amps, delta-T, static pressure) to spot drift.

2. System upgrades: Favor high-efficiency equipment and variable-speed drives. Look for ENERGY STAR ratings and high SEER/IEER values when applicable.

3. Smart controls: Program schedules, add occupancy-based setpoints, and tighten deadbands. A building management system can coordinate it all.

4. Airflow and envelope: Seal ducts, balance systems, and improve insulation where losses bite. Poor ductwork can wreck even great equipment.

5. Refrigerant and new tech: Understand A2L refrigerants, heat pump behavior in low temps, and VRF basics. Follow manufacturer procedures and local codes.

Small changes compound. Comfort rises. Bills shrink.

How to Display HVAC Systems Skills on Your Resume

2. Plumbing Repairs

Leaks, clogs, failed fixtures, pressure hiccups—plumbing problems punch above their weight. Quick, clean fixes protect health, interiors, and budgets.

Why It's Important

Unchecked water issues spiral into mold, structural damage, and emergency costs. Tight systems save water and keep spaces sanitary.

How to Improve Plumbing Repairs Skills

1. Routine inspections: Check valves, traps, supply lines, PRVs, and backflow devices. Monitor water meters for stealthy leaks.

2. Use quality materials: Match pipe and fitting materials to the job (PEX, copper, PVC, cast iron). Cheap parts fail fast.

3. Know the codes: Stay aligned with local plumbing and cross-connection rules. Document permits and tests.

4. Modern techniques: Use press-fit tools, expansion PEX, camera inspections, and trenchless options where appropriate.

5. Skill growth: Practice soldering, crimping, threading, and fixture rebuilding. Build a repeatable diagnostic flow.

How to Display Plumbing Repairs Skills on Your Resume

3. Electrical Troubleshooting

Find the fault, isolate the cause, fix the risk. From tripped breakers to mysterious intermittents, safe diagnosis keeps the lights on and equipment alive.

Why It's Important

Electrical faults can injure, start fires, or stall operations. Swift troubleshooting limits downtime and prevents repeat failures.

How to Improve Electrical Troubleshooting Skills

1. Fundamentals first: Voltage, current, resistance, grounding, and overcurrent protection. Know the why, not just the what.

2. Right tools: Use calibrated multimeters, clamp meters, non-contact testers, and circuit tracers. Verify your tester on a known live source before and after.

3. Methodical process: Start simple (power present? correct breaker? loose terminations?), then step deeper (device isolation, component testing, load analysis).

4. Safety always: Lockout/tagout, PPE, arc-flash labeling, and proper approach boundaries. Never guess—measure.

5. Keep learning: New controls, VFDs, and networked devices appear constantly. Stay current and practice on real equipment with supervision.

How to Display Electrical Troubleshooting Skills on Your Resume

4. Carpentry Techniques

From door alignment to subfloor repair, sharp carpentry stabilizes spaces. Fit, finish, and long-term durability start with good technique.

Why It's Important

Solid carpentry preserves structure, prevents drafts and water intrusion, and keeps interiors functional and quiet.

How to Improve Carpentry Techniques Skills

1. Master the basics: Measure twice, cut once. Accurate layout, square cuts, proper fasteners.

2. Tool accuracy: Keep blades sharp, squares true, and batteries charged. Calibrate often.

3. Material knowledge: Choose species and sheet goods wisely; respect movement, load, and moisture exposure.

4. Finishing: Sanding sequences, priming, sealing end grain, and choosing the right coatings.

5. Safety: Guards on, dust control active, hearing and eye protection always.

6. Community and feedback: Learn tricks from pros and share solutions to oddball problems.

How to Display Carpentry Techniques Skills on Your Resume

5. Welding Skills

Joining and repairing metal—railings, brackets, frames, piping supports—demands steady hands and respect for heat, metallurgy, and safety.

Why It's Important

Strong welds restore integrity and extend the life of metal components. Poor welds conceal risk; good ones quietly hold everything together.

How to Improve Welding Skills

1. Know your process: MIG, TIG, stick—match the method to the metal and the environment.

2. Safety first: Ventilation, fire watch, PPE, and hot work permits. Prep the area like it matters—because it does.

3. Practice and coupons: Run beads, vary positions, cut and bend your test pieces to see penetration and fusion.

4. Materials and settings: Dial in voltage, wire speed, gas flow, and preheat as needed for the alloy and thickness.

5. Get feedback: Have experienced welders critique your joints. Track what works.

6. Formal training: Short courses or certifications accelerate skill and safety.

How to Display Welding Skills on Your Resume

6. Building Automation (e.g., BACnet)

Automation ties HVAC, lighting, access, and more into a single brain. With BACnet and similar protocols, systems share data and cooperate instead of working blind.

Why It's Important

Better control means lower energy use, faster alarms, smoother scheduling, and longer equipment life. Data turns guesswork into targeted action.

How to Improve Building Automation (e.g., BACnet) Skills

1. Keep firmware current: Update controllers, servers, and field devices. Patches fix bugs, add features, and shore up security.

2. Segment the network: Separate building systems from business traffic. Use VLANs and access controls to limit blast radius.

3. Audit regularly: Trend critical points, check alarm floods, remove orphaned devices, and clean up naming conventions.

4. Train operators: Build standard operating procedures for overrides, schedules, and trending. Cross-train maintenance and controls staff.

5. Analytics: Layer fault detection and diagnostics to surface stuck valves, failed sensors, and rogue setpoints.

6. Harden security: Strong passwords, role-based access, backups, and tested restore procedures.

How to Display Building Automation (e.g., BACnet) Skills on Your Resume

7. Energy Management (e.g., Siemens Desigo)

Energy management platforms monitor, control, and optimize building loads—HVAC, lighting, and beyond. They make the invisible visible and actionable.

Why It's Important

Lower utility costs, smaller carbon footprints, steadier comfort, and fewer surprises. Good analytics reveal waste you can actually fix.

How to Improve Energy Management (e.g., Siemens Desigo) Skills

Turn data into savings with disciplined habits:

1. Integrate systems: Pull HVAC, lighting, and meters into one pane of glass. Unified data beats silos.

2. Update and maintain: Keep software and controllers current; verify sensors and calibrate meters.

3. Use analytics: Review peak demand, load profiles, and schedules. Hunt for simultaneous heating and cooling.

4. Train the team: Operators should know how to set schedules, create trends, and verify results.

5. Efficiency measures: LED retrofits, VFDs, demand-controlled ventilation, and networked lighting controls pay back quickly.

6. Renewables and storage: Where feasible, integrate solar or battery systems and coordinate with building controls.

7. Continuous optimization: Seasonal tune-ups, recommissioning, and alarms that drive action—not noise.

How to Display Energy Management (e.g., Siemens Desigo) Skills on Your Resume

8. Safety Compliance

Compliance means aligning daily work with safety laws, standards, and policies—electrical, fire, chemical, fall protection, and more. Paperwork and practice must match.

Why It's Important

It protects people first. It also shields the organization from fines, lawsuits, and downtime. Culture matters: safety that lives in habits, not just binders.

How to Improve Safety Compliance Skills

1. Audits and inspections: Use checklists aligned with applicable regulations. Close findings quickly and verify.

2. Training program: Task-specific, hands-on, and refreshed regularly. Emphasize hazard recognition.

3. Track regulations: Monitor updates from relevant authorities and standards bodies. Update SOPs promptly.

4. PPE and signage: Provide the right gear and maintain clear, consistent labeling and warnings.

5. Emergency readiness: Evacuation routes, drills, contact trees, spill kits, AEDs—tested, not theoretical.

6. Safety culture: Encourage reporting without blame. Reward hazard spotting and near-miss reporting.

7. Digital records: Use software to schedule inspections, track corrective actions, and store documents.

How to Display Safety Compliance Skills on Your Resume

9. Locksmithing

Locks, cores, cylinders, and access systems—installation, rekeying, repair, and documentation keep buildings secure and usable.

Why It's Important

Security and accessibility must coexist. Good locksmithing prevents breaches while ensuring the right people get in, fast.

How to Improve Locksmithing Skills

1. Ongoing education: Learn new hardware, key systems, electronic access, and code updates. Certifications help.

2. Hands-on practice: Work on a range of locks and cylinders. Speed comes after precision.

3. Tool mastery: Keep picks, plug spinners, key machines, and pinning kits in top shape; know their limits.

4. Networking: Trade techniques and unusual case studies with peers. Collective knowledge saves time.

5. Legal and ethical guardrails: Follow local laws and maintain tight key control records.

How to Display Locksmithing Skills on Your Resume

10. Painting Techniques

Prep, prime, paint, protect. The right approach preserves surfaces and cleans up a space’s look in one sweep.

Why It's Important

Quality work resists moisture, UV, abrasion, and stains. It also makes everything look cared for—which tenants notice.

How to Improve Painting Techniques Skills

1. Know your coatings: Match paint type to substrate and environment. Moisture and traffic dictate the spec.

2. Surface prep: Clean, sand, patch, and prime. Skipping prep guarantees failure.

3. Application methods: Brush, roller, or sprayer—choose based on area size, finish requirements, and overspray risk.

4. Edges and details: Practice cutting in and maintaining wet edges for uniform sheen.

5. Safety and cleanup: Ventilate, control dust, and dispose of materials properly.

6. Repetition: Build speed without sacrificing coverage or finish quality.

How to Display Painting Techniques Skills on Your Resume

11. Groundskeeping

Outside spaces frame the building. Mowing, pruning, litter control, snow and ice management, irrigation—curb appeal and safety start here.

Why It's Important

Neat grounds lift property value and reduce hazards. Overgrowth, ruts, and debris do the opposite.

How to Improve Groundskeeping Skills

1. Set a cadence: Mowing, edging, pruning, and cleanup on a predictable schedule tied to seasons.

2. Soil health: Test, amend, and aerate. Healthy soil shrinks watering needs and supports resilient plants.

3. Smart watering: Use drip or weather-based irrigation. Fix leaks and adjust zones for coverage, not puddles.

4. Sustainable choices: Native species, mulch, composting, and xeriscaping cut maintenance and water use.

5. Safety walkdowns: Remove dead limbs, level trip hazards, and mark uneven surfaces.

6. Design that lasts: Mix perennials and seasonal color; match plantings to microclimates and traffic patterns.

How to Display Groundskeeping Skills on Your Resume

12. Preventive Maintenance

Planned inspections, lubrication, cleaning, calibration, and small repairs that stop big breakdowns before they start.

Why It's Important

It extends asset life, improves safety, and flattens emergency costs. Reliability is built, not hoped for.

How to Improve Preventive Maintenance Skills

1. Adopt a CMMS: Schedule work, track histories, store manuals, and measure completion rates.

2. Standardize inspections: Asset-specific checklists with measurable readings (temps, pressures, vibration).

3. Add predictive tools: Vibration analysis, thermography, and oil sampling reveal early failure signs.

4. Train the team: Teach failure modes and proper procedures. Cross-train for coverage.

5. Spare parts strategy: Stock critical spares; review lead times and supplier reliability.

6. Review and refine: Analyze PM effectiveness, trim non-value tasks, and adjust intervals based on data.

How to Display Preventive Maintenance Skills on Your Resume