
The indoor air quality in your workplace or commercial facility affects everyone. Poor air quality has ties to health concerns, and it can also result in mould and mildew.
Health Canada has guidelines for indoor air quality, and employers are responsible for ensuring a safe and healthy workplace, including as it pertains to IAQ.
But what exactly is considered acceptable indoor air quality, and how do you improve it? Keep reading to learn more.
Why Does Indoor Air Quality Matter? The Hidden Dangers of Poor Indoor Air Quality
Indoor air quality affects nearly everything in your building. People breathe air to survive. That same air comes into contact with all your machinery and products.
Failure to maintain good indoor air quality can cause some serious issues for the people working in your building and the materials they work with.
Poor indoor air quality could mean excess smoke, humidity, and allergens. Some health issues associated with air pollution include respiratory illnesses, headaches, asthma complications, and various skin illnesses.
If you don’t use an indoor air quality monitor, then you’d never know there was a problem until people start getting sick. Furthermore, it’ll be much harder to pinpoint what exactly is making people sick without one.
As for your equipment, high amounts of particulate matter can clog filters or heat sinks and promote corrosion. They can shorten your equipment’s usable life and present operational challenges.
Why You Need to Monitor Indoor Air Quality
Not all places in Canada have legislation about indoor air quality, but all employers have a responsibility to ensure that a workplace is safe and healthy. That includes indoor air quality. Here are three good reasons to monitor IAQ:
1. Health: By monitoring indoor air quality, you ensure the air is safe to breathe for you and your employees. Poor indoor air quality can lead to health issues and sick building syndrome, which is associated with headaches, fatigue, irritation, and more.
2. Productivity: Breathing bad air can impact cognitive function, productivity, work quality, and absenteeism. After all, how well do you perform when you’re always tired and feeling ill?
3. Machinery: Mold, dust, humidity, VOCs, and other air pollutants also have implications for the performance, maintenance, and longevity of various types of machinery, especially electronics and IT equipment.
To monitor indoor air quality in a workplace, industrial facility, or business, you can install individual sensors/monitors or install an integrated system that works with the HVAC system to monitor IAQ throughout the entire building.
Air Quality Factors
There are a lot of different factors that can negatively affect your air quality. They all differ based on your facility’s location, the area, and the HVAC systems already set up. In some cases, the machines you use can also cause an adverse effect on your air.
Outdoor Pollution
Air pollutants often come from outside of your building. These can include radon, pesticides, and general pollution in your area.
For example, a facility based in an industrial area may have to deal with a lot of smoke. A facility located near a farm won’t have smoky air, but they will have to manage airborne chemicals as well as unwelcome smells.
Indoor Elements
You can also experience poor air quality due to indoor factors, such as cleaning chemicals, newly installed flooring, and heating systems. Older buildings may run into issues with asbestos-containing insulation. If you don’t run your heating systems often, then you may smell accumulated dust when you do turn them on.
Additionally, any fuel-burning combustion appliances will need to be properly vented or they will make it difficult to breathe.
Allergens
While allergens don’t usually count as air pollutants, they do cause issues for anyone with preexisting respiratory issues. Allergens include pollen, animal dander, and dust.
A properly working air filtration system should prevent any of these from getting spread around your facility.
Viruses and Bacteria
In current times, companies need to pay special care towards preventing the spread of any illness or disease in the workplace. Poor air quality, lack of ventilation, and low humidity levels can increase the transmission rate of pathogens like coronavirus.
High humidity can also cause bacteria to flourish, as they love warm and moist environments.
Combatting Outdoor Pollution: Strategies for Better Indoor Air Quality
Outdoor pollution comes in many forms, including ozone, dust, allergens, greenhouse gasses, wildfire smoke, and beyond.
You can help improve indoor air quality by preventing outdoor pollution from getting inside, and here are some key strategies:
- Seal windows, doors, and leaks
- Use air conditioning in summer instead of opening windows
- Install a mechanical ventilation system
- Install an air purification system
- Clean regularly
- Install a humidity management system
- Install draft stoppers and air sealing products
The Role of Allergens in Indoor Air Quality
Allergens play a significant role in indoor air quality because they can trigger or exacerbate allergic reactions and respiratory issues such as asthma. People with allergies and asthma could be more susceptible to indoor air contaminants, including:
- Pollen
- Mold
- Dander
- Dust
- Insect droppings
- VOCs
- Smoke
Not only can allergens cause sneezing, itchy eyes, nasal congestion, and skin rashes, but they can also make it difficult to breathe, impair cognitive function, and lead to chronic respiratory diseases.
Protecting Against Viruses and Bacteria: A Crucial Aspect of Indoor Air Quality
One thing that the COVID-19 pandemic made abundantly clear was how easily pathogens can spread inside and how HVAC systems can distribute them farther.
People can spread airborne pathogens by sneezing, coughing, or shedding skin cells. What’s more, damp environments promote the growth of fungi and bacteria, such as Aspergillus or Legionella.
A healthy workforce is crucial to the success of any organization, and you can improve indoor air quality and manage the spread of pathogens by:
- Improving ventilation
- Keeping humidity levels between 30 and 50%
- Cleaning ducts and HVAC systems regularly
- Installing an air purifier like a HEPA filter or UVC light
Indoor Air Quality Testing: Methods and Importance
Indoor air quality testing is essential for protecting your employees and your business. There are a few different ways to do so.
How to Test Indoor Air Quality:
1. Purchase an indoor air quality monitor to constantly check for any contaminants or pollutants. The best quality monitors provide measurements on humidity, temperature, volatile organic compounds, and levels of particulate matter. It should also show your Air Quality Index, which the EPA uses to determine the risk of health problems.
2. Evaluate any health symptoms, such as congestion or headaches. Two of the most dangerous substances you may encounter are carbon monoxide and radon.
Carbon monoxide is an odourless gas that can easily build up and can kill at high levels. Long-term exposure to radon is the second-leading cause of lung cancer in the United States, and should be prevented at all costs.
Critical Health Symptoms to Watch for in Poor Indoor Air Environments
Poor indoor air quality can cause a myriad of symptoms and health problems, including:
- Coughing
- Sneezing
- Shortness of breath
- Wheezing
- Aggravated asthma
- Itchy, watery eyes
- Runny or congested nose
- Skin rashes
- Throat irritation
- Headaches
- Dizziness
- Fatigue
- Difficulty concentrating
- Nausea
What’s more, there are also long-term health issues associated with exposure to poor indoor air quality, such as chronic respiratory disease, recurring respiratory infections, development of cardiovascular disease, compromised immunity, and increased cancer risk.
Mitigating Carbon Monoxide and Radon: Essential Steps for Indoor Air Safety
Carbon monoxide and radon are two of the most dangerous indoor air pollutants because they’re colourless, odorless, tasteless, and have severe health risks.
Carbon monoxide is a gas produced when fuels containing carbon—such as wood, gasoline, natural gas, propane, coal, or oil—are burned incompletely. To keep your workplace safe, you should:
- Install carbon monoxide detectors
- Ensure proper ventilation
- Properly maintain gas-powered equipment, including boilers, furnaces, water heaters, and forklifts
- Have no idling policies in place for machinery
Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that’s formed from the natural decay of uranium, which is found in soil, rocks, and water. To keep your workplace safe, you should:
- Test for radon regularly
- Maintain proper ventilation
- Seal cracks in floors, walls, and foundations
- Install a radon mitigation system if radon is a problem in your building
How to Improve Air Quality
Managing your indoor air quality doesn’t have to require heavy-duty machinery or massive changes to your work environment. In some cases, something as simple as an air purifier can make a huge difference in a smaller space.
Harnessing the Power of Indoor Plants for Cleaner Air
Plants naturally convert carbon dioxide into oxygen, as well as remove toxins from the air. The best indoor plants for air quality include areca palms, snake plants, gerbera daisies, and money plants.
For example, the areca palm removes airborne formaldehyde, xylene, and toluene. Snake plants remove benzene and trichloroethylene, along with the previously mentioned toxins.
Optimizing HVAC Systems for Enhanced Air Quality
Your HVAC system cleans your air by taking stagnant air and pulling it through filters, before cycling it back into your home. These filters capture dirt and debris, but they need to be regularly cleaned to get the best results.
Likewise, you’ll need to hire an HVAC technician to clean out your ducts from time to time to account for mould growth as well as any kind of infestation.
The Efficacy of Air Purifiers in Enhancing Indoor Air
Air purifiers are made to reduce allergens in the air as well as clean out any other airborne particulate. Some come small enough to fit on your end table and work for smaller spaces. They can also come in industrial sizes.
Taking Action: Steps to Ensure Clean Air in Your Commercial Facility
Even if there aren’t specific regulations in your area for indoor air quality in commercial spaces, Health Canada has acceptable exposure limits for residential and public spaces.
Further, ASHRAE has standards for ventilation rates that can help ensure a safe and healthy workplace.
The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) has a six-part strategy for controlling indoor air quality, and it includes:
- Identifying and removing sources of contaminants
- Ensuring contaminants from one area (such as a bathroom or photocopy room) don’t disperse
- Ventilating the space to bring in enough fresh outdoor air to meet local building standards and other codes
- Scheduling certain activities (such as waxing floors) to minimize exposure to contaminants
- Installing an air filtration system to clean the air
- Educating employees so they know the sources and effects of contaminants
Empowering Employees with Knowledge: Understanding Indoor Air Quality
One of the main strategies recommended by CCOHS for managing indoor air quality is to ensure employee education regarding IAQ. That can include training programs, awareness initiatives, and skills development that focus on:
- What is indoor air quality and why is it important
- Common indoor air pollutants
- Health effects and symptoms of exposure to poor-quality air
- Causes of poor IAQ in the workplace
- Identifying and reporting IAQ issues
- Using products responsibly
- Understanding emergency procedures
- How to properly operate ventilation systems
Call Your Local HVAC Contractor Today
Clean air is a premium that your employees deserve at work. However, providing it is easier said than done. When in doubt, reach out to your local HVAC contractor to learn more about your options with indoor air quality.
At FurnacePrices.ca, you can compare quotes from certified contractors in your area. All of them have verified licenses and insurance, as well as a dependable track record.
Contact us today to get a free no-obligation quote and buy with confidence and peace of mind.
FAQ
What is acceptable indoor air quality?
Acceptable indoor air quality refers to air free from harmful levels of pollutants, that provides adequate oxygen for breathing, and that’s comfortable for occupants in terms of temperature and humidity.
Both Health Canada and ASHRAE have standards for pollutants and ventilation rates that can help ensure good indoor air quality.
What is poor indoor air quality?
Poor indoor air quality refers to air that contains harmful levels of pollutants or environmental factors, such as mold, smoke, VOCs, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, or radon. These contaminants can negatively impact health, comfort, and productivity.
When should you stay indoors because of poor outdoor air quality?
Outdoor air quality is assessed using the Air Quality Index (AQI). When the AQI is between 0 and 100, it’s considered safe. Between 101 and 150 can be problematic for sensitive people. Anything above 151 is considered anywhere from unsafe to hazardous, and people should avoid outdoor activities and stay inside.
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