Today's Acceptable Ventilation is Unacceptable

Current ventilation standards are based on odor instead of health. One cannot smell healthy air. Ventilation standards disfavor air quality in smaller residences and multi-family dwellings while excessively ventilating larger homes. Ventilation impacts our health, cognition, sleep, and disease transmission. This session provides background on today's ventilation standards and recommendations for creating healthy indoor environments. The Covid Safe Space IAQ calculator for reducing SARS-CoV-2 transmission in buildings is introduced. Examples show reduction of infection probability and infection multiplication with increased fresh air, improved air filtration, face mask usage, and vaccination in different building venues (classrooms, restaurants, offices, gyms, homes).

Session Speaker(s): 

Session Chair(s): 

Event Time: 

Friday, May 7, 2021 - 11:30am to 12:30pm

Room / Location:

CEU Information: 

AIA 1.0 LU/HSW
BPI 1.0 hour
Mass. CSL 1.0 hour Energy
4.5 credit-hour packets available from PHIUS, RESNET, and Mass. CSL

Learning Objectives:

  • Define how indoor air quality impacts on health, cognition, sleep and productivity
  • Distinguish how the synergistic interaction of fresh air ventilation, filtered air recirculation, and UVGI (Ultra-violet Germicidal Irradiation) create healthy indoor air environments
  • Analyze the costs related to increasing fresh air ventilation, improved air filtration, and UVGI relative to building occupant value
  • Identify how transmission of SARS-CoV-2, and how indoor air quality, vaccination, and infections reduce the probability of infection of susceptible building occupants, and how IAQ improvements reduce disease transmission below self-sustaining levels

Session ID: 

BOS21-708