The Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) Playground Safety Handbook provides best practices for playground design, installation, maintenance, and routine inspection process management. A current copy of the handbook is available […]
Increasing the airflow in buildings can improve air quality and reduce exposure to airborne viruses, like the one that causes COVID-19. In a position statement, the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) states:
Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 through the air is sufficiently likely that airborne exposure to the virus should be controlled. Changes to building operations, including the operation of heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems, can reduce airborne exposures. Ventilation and filtration provided by heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning systems can reduce the airborne concentration of SARS-CoV-2 and thus the risk of transmission through the air. Unconditioned spaces can cause thermal stress to people that may be directly life-threatening, and that may also lower resistance to infection. In general, disabling of heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning systems is not a recommended measure to reduce the transmission of the virus.
In general, steps should be taken to increase the intake of outdoor air as much as possible. Because buildings, especially older ones, have HVAC systems with different capabilities, the ASHRAE recommends that an HVAC specialist or engineer be consulted to maximize the airflow and ventilation in each building area. Some general steps building personnel can take to improve air quality are as follows:
Even If a building does not have an existing HVAC system, there are still steps that can be taken to increase airflow, such as:
County personnel should take steps to reduce the transmission of COVID-19 by increasing outside airflow in county facilities. Additional resources on maximizing airflow include The CDC’s Interim Guidance for Businesses and Employers Responding to COVID-19 (May 2020) and the ASHRAE Guidance for Re-Opening Buildings. For more information, contact CTSI at (303) 861 0507.
A PDF of this Technical Update is available here.
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