Facilities Services
The Department of Facilities includes several different units that serve the campus. It is useful to be familiar with the workings of a few of these departments; it is particularly important to know which departments to call for specific service needs.
- Building Services (8-3490) primarily provides janitorial, extermination and moving services to the campus.
- Grounds and Buildings Maintenance (8-8000) primarily carries out the maintenance and repair of campus facilities.
- The Housing Department manages student Housing and Dining contracts, oversees student needs in the facilities areas, assigns rooms, assures that day-to-day student needs are being met with respect to dormitories and sees that all residents live up to fire code and other safety requirements.
- Dining Services (8-6097) operates all campus dining halls and other food services.
- The Engineering Department manages campus utility systems, including the central heating and chilled water plants and manages construction and repair projects that are primarily engineering in nature.
- Conference Services (8-6115) schedules and manages all use of campus facilities by non-Princeton University users, especially summer camps and other groups that use the dormitories during the summer months.
In particular, when requesting services, students must note that janitors work for Building Services, tradesmen for Grounds and Buildings Maintenance; this distinction can help when calling for services. A detailed explanation of the services offered by the Grounds and Building Maintenance and Building Services departments is available on the Facilities website.
The following information further outlines the responsibilities of the Facilities Customer Service Center, the Departments of Building Services and Maintenance.
Facilities Customer Service Center
The Facilities Customer Service Center provides students with care and quality service for plumbing, electrical, heating, cooling, custodial, housing, pest control, furniture and a variety of other service requests within dormitories and Annexes.
Hours: Monday - Friday, 7:30am - 5:00pm
Phone: (609) 258-8000
Fax: (609) 258-8001
Email: service@princeton.edu
You can also submit a work order online by completing an Online Work Request. You will receive a confirmation e-mail with a work order number for your records once the request is submitted.
For emergency requests after hours or on weekends, please contact the Department of Public Safety at (609) 258-1000.
Building Services
Building Services is responsible for cleaning and caring for campus buildings. Should a student have a question or problem with the following areas, call 8-8000.
- Bicycles
- Courtesy and Respect
- Extermination
- Housekeeping
- Laundry Rooms
- Light Bulbs
- Loan of Cleaning Equipment
- Recycling
- Resource Conservation
- Sanitation/Trash
- Squirrels/Raccoons/Bats
- Storage
- Window Screens and Shades
Bicycles are to be secured only to University-provided bicycle racks. Bicycles should not be secured to benches, light posts, trees, chain/post borders or handrails. Interior bicycle storage is permitted in designated areas only. Bicycles are not permitted to be attached to any interior railing, placed in a hallway or allowed to impede a means of egress. Bicycles that impede a means of egress are cut away and confiscated by the Housing Department. Bicycles attached to handicapped ramps in any manner or presenting a safety hazard are confiscated. A fee is charged before bicycles can be reclaimed.
Bicycles are permitted inside students’ rooms if they are placed so that they do not block or impede egress. Hooks are available for students who wish to hang their bicycles in their rooms. To obtain hooks, contact the Facilities Customer Service Center at 8-8000. Requests are gathered during the first few weeks of classes and the installations are begun in mid-October on a dorm-by-dorm basis.
The Facilities Department asks that students respect their janitors and treat them with dignity. The best way to do this is to be mindful that every individual's actions have consequences. Being anything less than neat, tidy and respectful is not acceptable.
Routine efforts are made to ensure that all pest problems are controlled and eliminated. However, there may be a need to control a particular pest problem in a student’s room. Should such a need arise, students should call the Facilities Customer Service Center at 8-8000. Requests for services are handled as quickly as possible within the framework of the New Jersey pesticide control regulations.
Residents can help reduce the incidence of pest-related requests by maintaining their rooms in a sanitary condition. Food should be stored in closed containers and garbage should be disposed of promptly.
Building Services makes every effort to respond professionally and promptly to students’ requests. All materials used to control pests are registered with and applied according to Environmental Protection Agency regulations by the pest elimination specialist. Should a student have any pest-related concerns, they should feel free to discuss them with the pest elimination specialist.
Janitorial services are available 7:30am to 4:00pm, Monday through Friday. During the academic year, Building Services is responsible for cleaning the public areas of all dormitory buildings. Students may not place University-owned furniture in the hallways. Corridors, hallways and stairwells must be clear at all times; nothing may be placed in these areas. Students who fail to keep public areas clear are cited for a fire safety violation. Students should report any problems with public areas to Building Services at 8-8000. Students should report the need for appliance repairs in the Graduate College or Annex kitchens to the Facilities Customer Service Center at 8-8000.
There are five laundry rooms (listed below). The cost per load is $0.75 for washers and $0.25 for 15 minutes of drying time. Should students have any questions, they should email the House Committee for Graduate College washers and dryers or the Housing Department for Annex washers and dryers. All problems should be reported to the Facilities Customer Service Center at 8-8000.
- Old Graduate College 15th entry basement
- New Graduate College 34th entry basement
- 11 Dickinson Street basement
- 35 University Place
- 27-29 Edwards Place
Most light bulbs in the dormitories are replaced by Building Services. If a bulb needs replacement, call the Facilities Customer Service Center at 8-8000 or submit a work order online.
Mops, brooms, and other equipment are available to dormitory residents from the Porter’s Lodge in the Graduate College. Students’ University ID cards are held until all borrowed items are returned. Please see the Porter's Lodge website for their hours of operation. In the Annexes, students should contact their building janitor or Building Services (8-3490) for cleaning supplies.
Posters with recycling information are located in all dormitory bathrooms. Students are asked to recycle the following items:
- Glass, metal, and plastic containers. Place these items in the recycling barrels in dormitory bathrooms or in the green barrels in the dumpster areas.
- Mixed paper. All mixed paper should be placed in the containers labeled “recycled paper only”. The label contains information as to what is acceptable as mixed paper. Full containers may be placed in the hallway for disposal but should otherwise not be kept in the hallway because of fire and safety concerns. If contaminants or food items are found in the recycling baskets, a warning notice will be left under the door.
The University has a strong commitment to the conservation of our natural resources. It is expected that all occupants of University housing will do their best to forward that commitment. Students are expected to minimize energy use whenever possible. Room lights and other electric equipment should be turned off when not needed. Shower and other water usage should be of a reasonable duration. In units with separate thermostats, heat should not be set at an excessive level. Any problems affecting the above systems should be reported to maintenance for repair. In general, students are asked to be aware of and reasonable in their use of all consumable energy resources.
With many people living together in a dormitory, sanitation is vital. While the responsibility for cleaning public areas rests with Building Services, the students themselves are responsible for keeping their own rooms, kitchens, bathrooms within suites and any facilities they use in sanitary condition. In the Graduate College and Annexes, residents are responsible for cleaning their kitchens and placing the trash in the trash containers. Should students have any concerns, they should report them to the Building Services Department immediately.
Student rooms and the bathrooms located within or shared by these rooms are not regularly cleaned by Building Services while the rooms are occupied. Students are responsible for the cleaning and general maintenance of their own rooms. However, after a room is vacated, every effort is made to clean the room before the new resident arrives. If a roommate vacates from a double room or suite, Building Services will notify the remaining resident(s) 24 hours prior to entering the room to clean it. If there is a shared bath for the room/suite, Building Services will also clean that space and requests that any personal effects be removed.
Trash should be kept separate from recyclable materials. Trash containers must be kept in suites or rooms until ready for disposal. Full containers may be placed in the hallway for disposal but otherwise should not be kept in the hallway because of fire and safety concerns. If recyclable materials are found in the trash, a warning notice will be left under the door. If students have questions, call Building Services at 8-3490 or 8-8000.
Squirrels can easily enter through open windows; they search for food, destroy property and in general, annoy residents. The campus squirrels are bold and used to living among people. Students should exercise care so that they do not have any squirrels or other unwanted visitors in their living quarters, risking the possibility of being bitten. In all cases, please report any wild animal found inside a campus building to Public Safety at 258-1000.
While the likelihood of a bat, raccoon or other wild animal found on campus being rabid is relatively low, you should always treat with caution any animal that behaves in a suspicous manner (lethargic/erratic moves), do not approach or handle the animal and report it to Public Safety at 258-1000.
If a bat is found in your dormitory room, you should immediately report it to Public Safety at 258-1000. You should avoid contact with the bat, vacate the space and, if possible, close doors and windows to confine the bat until Public Safety responds. Subsequently, any fruit or open food that was in your room should be discarded. Public Safety will secure the room until cleared by animal control personnel and determine who in the room may have been exposed. Important: If you awake to find a bat in your room, it should be assumed that you may have had some exposure while asleep. If you have had potential exposure, you are advised to go to McCosh Health Center for medical consultation and consideration of the need for rabies immunization. If the bat is captured and tests negative for rabies, there will be no need for immunization. If you cannot stay in your room because of pending clearance by animal control personnel, you will be offered overnight accommodations at McCosh Health Center.
Window screens in dormitory rooms and common spaces should be kept in place and in the closed position to prevent entry by squirrels and bats. Students should contact the Facilities Customer Service Center at 258-8000 immediately to report any missing or broken screens.
Limited storage space is available in the Graduate College and Annexes. University policy prohibits the storage of refrigerators, furniture, lofts, carpets, etc. Only boxes are accepted in storage rooms. Each box must be properly identified with the student’s name, address, department, the date it is put into storage and the date it will be picked up. The box is to be taped shut.
Note: Students who are no longer enrolled must remove all items from storage or they will be considered abandoned and will be disposed of.
Students can get access to storage by calling Building Services (8-3490) between 9:00am and 3:00pm, Monday through Friday. During peak moving periods, special storage access schedules are posted. Please do not wait until the day you leave campus to store your belongings.
Students should read the storage information in the large check-out brochure that is sent out in April and May. For questions regarding storage, call Building Services (8-3490). Information regarding the student storage and moving agency is available from the student managers (see Campus Telephone Directory listings).
Availability of window screens differs from dorm to dorm. Most dorms have complete screens. If you are in one of these dorms, Maintenance will repair them on call. Other dorms only have limited screens; these must be fabricated individually and will be provided on a one-per-room basis on request by occupants. If you are in one of these latter dorms and have a room with no screens, Maintenance will provide one on request.
All dormitory bedrooms and first-floor common areas are entitled to shades. Maintenance accepts requests for shades in other common areas throughout the year. Students should call the Facilities Customer Service Center at 8-8000 if they need to have a bedroom shade replaced.
Maintenance
The Grounds and Building Maintenance Department is responsible for the upkeep and repair of all campus grounds and buildings. Situations that jeopardize the health, safety or property of residents are given priority. For service and repairs, students should call the Facilities Customer Service Center at 8-8000, which is open from 7:30am to 5:00pm, Monday through Friday. After hours, students may leave a message for the following business day. If students have an emergency involving a power outage, a flood or a potentially dangerous situation at a time when the office is not open, call the Department of Public Safety at 8-1000.
Routine service requests may be submitted by fax to (609) 258-8001 or online. Fax and online requests should not be used for emergencies. These should always be telephoned to the Facilities Customer Service Center at 8-8000 or to the Department of Public Safety at 8-1000 in order to assure an appropriate, timely follow-up.
If you feel a request for service was not given proper attention, please contact the Assistant Director or Director of Maintenance at 8-5299.