Indoor air quality


Ian Rogers, sales director Gilberts


www.heatingandventilating.net


A


s an industry, we need to shout louder than ever, to educate everyone that whether they are at work, play or home, the balance


between energy conservation, ventilation and air quality can literally be a matter of life or death. In these days of climate change and escalating


energy prices, people are shutting windows and turning off ventilation, to conserve energy and the money that is directly connected to it. However, in doing so, we are failing to allow ourselves – and the building – to breathe and breathe well. The importance of control and balance of the indoor air quality, cannot be bypassed, overlooked, or even forgotten.


An invisible problem


It doesn’t help in that it is an invisible, insensible and somewhat indiscriminate problem. It’s not until we see signs of damp or when mould appears on walls or furniture that we know there it has become a problem. We wouldn’t drink a glass of dirty water because we know of the dangers, but we can’t see dirt and pollutants in the air we are breathing indoors where we spend around 90% of our time, so the air we breathe inside should be as clean as drinking water. Despite sick building syndrome, and the spread of coughs, cold, fl u, Covid etc., most people still fail to associate those issues with poor air quality, yet they are all caused by airborne pollutants, which are exasperated by inadequate ventilation. The inaugural international World Ventil8 Day


in November has been heralded a success in championing the correlation between ventilation, good health, wellbeing and productivity. But has the message got beyond those involved in building design and specifi cation? For more than 20 years, the concept of “build tight, ventilate right” has been discussed. Yet up to 20% of UK homes still fall below the Decent Homes Standard with an average 5% still having damp problems(1). Building Regulations Approved Document F (updated in 2021) and the Health & Safety Executive set minimum standards for ventilation- between 8-10l/p/s. Document F also raised the criteria to help improve IAQ, by requiring regular servicing and maintenance of ventilation plant, and CO2 sensors. Building designers and constructors also have


to comply with Building Regulations Approved Document L for energy conservation and air leakage. The changing climate- more spells of heavier rain, higher humidity and wetter winters – only exacerbates those problems: indeed, on a wet day, if we open a window to maintain indoor air quality, are we actually letting more moisture in than out? Irrespective of the weather, we humans generate 40g


18 February 2023


Indoor air quality- it is a matter of life and death


The tragic death of Awaab Ishak Starkly, the boy who died from a respiratory condition caused by mould, highlights the importance of the need for good indoor air quality (IAQ)- and how, even in a modern, socially and technically aware world, it is still something that can fall short all too often. Ian Rogers, sales director Gilberts Blackpool explains


of water vapour per hour. With rising energy bills, there is a growing tendency to shut trickle vents and windows. Unfortunately we do let heat out with the damp, “dirty” air when we open the property to the outside, there is no getting away from that entirely, however there are ways to reduce that impact and to improve indoor air quality without drastic heat loss.


What is the answer?


The solutions already exist. Mechanical ventilation with heat recovery (MVHR) was pioneered as long ago as 1997. As with all technology, it has evolved, its latest incarnation being hybrid ventilation with heat recovery (HVHR). The issue is more one of education, making the world at large change their misconceptions that allowing ventilation i.e. air to circulate and airborne pollutants, water vapour to escape does not mean all the heat is escaping too. There is no quick fi x in changing people’s


perceptions. It is the constant drip drip of the message. Whilst it is at the forefront of people’s minds, after such a tragedy as little Awaab, we have an ideal opportunity to educate people, and help them understand. It is education of people at every step: the building


owners, the occupiers. Correct airfl ow/ ventilation protects their health, the building fabric (reducing repair & maintenance bills), and the planet. To pick up on an idea mooted during World Ventil8


Day, and going back to the dirty water analogy, maybe we all need to push for a public certifi cation scheme for IAQ, similar to the Building Energy Certifi cates, BREEAM, LEED, or even the star rating for hospitality venues- something that goes beyond aspirational, to become a “must have”? IAQ is a right. It is not something that should


be ignored. It impacts our health, wellbeing and productivity. It is ‘the air we breath’.


DOWNLOAD THE HVR APP NOW


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36