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Healthy Air, Healthy Students

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“Here is the bad news and the good news of achieving indoor air quality in schools,” says Rich Prill, buildings science and indoor air quality specialist at Washington State University Extension Energy Program in Spokane. “The bad news is that there are a lot of problems, but no specific guidelines that schools are required to follow. There are a lot of suggestions from various agencies and lots of literature to sort through. The good news is that, since there are no requirements, you don’t have to apply rules whether or not they make sense. You can make up your own rules to fit your climate, resources and situation. The results can be more cost-effective, more efficient and more rewarding.”

IAQ Award Winner: Charlotte-Mecklenburg SD, North Carolina

The Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District in North Carolina is the nation’s 23rd-largest school system and a winner of the EPA Tools For Schools Excellence Award. Safety officer Kenneth Boggs shares some lessons learned.

One of the biggest problems is that the proper commissioning, testing and balancing of a newly-installed HVAC system are often neglected. “Usually it’s a money issue and people don’t see the benefit,” says Boggs. “They feel because it’s a new system, it should work. But the majority of the time, it doesn’t. There’s always some issue that is found. The damper is located in the wrong place, the air or water flow is not properly balanced or the unit is not installed correctly.”

Windows should be kept closed. In a properly designed system, only 10 to 15 percent of the air should come from outside. Opening the windows, especially when there is humidity, disrupts the system and lets in pollutants. Boggs points out that all kinds of contaminants find their way into a school, including perfumes, air fresheners, cat dander and particles given off by copiers and fax machines. Moreover, says Boggs, opening windows doesn’t necessarily let out bad air; instead, it just brings in more bad air. A good ventilation system is a must.

Use proper materials. “Vinyl walls are notorious for being vapor barriers that allow moisture to damage sheetrock and promote mold growth,” Boggs says. “We don’t use it anymore. We just paint the sheetrock.” Yet even painted sheetrock that looks perfect can have a very high moisture content, he cautions. A moisture detector costing $200 to $300 can help spot problems in this area. For this reason, Boggs does not use sheetrock where there is a likelihood of water damage, such as in restrooms, mechanical rooms, or exterior walls. “In these cases we use masonry construction instead,” Boggs says.

Prill, who teaches indoor air quality classes and has inspected hundreds of schools and other facilities, recommends that schools pay attention to the following five conditions: dryness, cleanliness, comfort, pollution control and ventilation.

Dryness

IAQ Award Winner: Cypress-Fairbanks ISD, Texas

Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District, in Houston, a winner of the EPA Tools For Schools Excellence Award, has a lot of indoor air quality to monitor. The district, which has a projected enrollment of 80,000 that is expected to grow to 84,000 next year, has 9.4 million square feet of facility space and another 1.2 million square feet under construction.

Jim Foxx, director of operations and indoor air quality coordinator recalls that in the early 1990s the district realized it had to be proactive on this issue and developed a response team, which was formalized in 1998. “We have a unique approach in that we have not developed our program incrementally, but have received a top-down commitment from the administration and board for a district-wide program.”

A variety of people are part of the district’s indoor air quality response team, including the registered nurse, building administrator and head custodian in each building, as well as all the maintenance staff. “On a day-to-day basis we have ongoing inspections with a large number of eyes,” says Foxx. “The main dynamic is that we are proactive, that is to say, we have the people trained, knowledgeable, and constantly aware. That’s what drives our entire program.

“If a custodian sees a wet ceiling tile, he removes it, then marks it for assessment. Then the area is checked to see what caused the moisture, whether it was a faulty HVAC system, bad plumbing, or a leaky roof. Then the entire problem is corrected, not just the one system. We’re always looking at the HVAC systems, the roof, and the building envelope, all the way up to and into the classroom. We’ve set up a reporting system, so that if anybody has a concern it’s easy to make a report, and the problem is addressed.

“For instance, the issue of mold has dominated everybody’s consciousness for the past several years. So in 2001 we made a decision to train our in-house staff for mold remediation. Then, in 2003, the Texas Legislature passed a bill stating all contractors must be licensed. We currently have two mold contractors, of which I am one, as well as 27 trained personnel, so we are ready for any mold remediation. In the summer of 2004, we were put to the test when a water main broke and flooded 56,000 square feet. We were able to meet that emergency quickly and efficiently. We don’t get many surprises because we’ve prepared for them.”

“The building needs to be dry. A wet building is a failed building,” says Prill. “It will have structural and cosmetic damage, look ugly and be expensive to repair. It will be a health hazard that attracts fungus, mold, bacteria, insects and rodents, all of which affect air quality.”

Follow these suggestions to keep your building dry:

  • Have a pitched rather than a flat roof. Leaks are more infrequent and easier to find. The HVAC system has to go inside, out of the weather, for increased energy savings.
  • Make sure all the gutters, sidings, windows and doors are free of leaks.
  • “Often, schools are built on the cheapest property, in moist lowlands, so you have a whole wet building,” says Prill. Make sure all underground moisture from the basement, crawlspaces and site drainage doesn’t seep into the building. Make sure water drains away from the school.

Schools are being built faster and cheaper, so air conditioning and plumbing elements may not be attached or installed properly, resulting in leaks, says Prill. Check those connections.

Cleanliness

“One of the first line items that gets impacted when there is a shortage of funds is the custodial staff,” says Prill. During the design phase, minimize awkward spaces so the building is easy to clean.

  • Don’t use carpets in hallways or heavy traffic areas. Teachers often like carpets because it helps to muffle noise. If you must use carpets in classrooms, look for vinyl-backed partial carpets that can be easily removed for cleaning.
  • Utilize proper landscaping so kids track in as little dirt as possible.
  • Increase classroom storage, but do not have permanent cabinets near the windows or exterior walls, because those are areas where moisture can gather.
  • Suspended ceilings tend to attract loads of particles on their tops, which then drift into the air handling system and are recycled. Make sure you have good filters and an air duct that sucks up those particles before they get to the ceiling. If the air duct is filled with dust and other contaminants, it may be worth calling in a HVAC Duct Cleaning company to help fix the problem. It is very important to make sure that you get this sorted as soon as you can, as this could case many problems later on in life. So it is far easier to just get on with the duct cleaning then hoping that no one will notice a problem. Other things that you should consider would be keeping the ceiling tiles clean, and making sure you don’t have exposed fiberglass or other materials above the ceiling tile.
  • Provide the cleaning staff with easy-to-use, efficient cleaning equipment, and instruct them in the proper cleaning techniques.
  • Use environmentally friendly cleaning products. Plan ahead: Don’t choose floor tiles that require an industrial-strength chemical cleanser.

Comfort

At first glance, comfort might not seem related to air quality. But Prill explains that discomfort issues caused by loud noise or poor lighting often are confused with air quality problems. In any event, if the student is feeling nauseated, dizzy or faint, he or she is probably not breathing properly. One thing that can often help when the air quality is poor, is using air purifiers to make breathing more comfortable. This might also help to stop bacteria spreading through the air. To research more on this check out Best Air Purifier India reviewing site.

  • Proper insulation protects against excessive heat or cold. But even the best insulation can’t regulate heat from the sun streaming in through the windows. Keep it cool inside by using proper shades.
  • Use natural light when possible. Allow teachers to control lighting so it will not be too bright or too dim.
  • Keep windows closed to keep outside noise at bay.

Pollution Control

Know where pollutants are located in the building and make sure people are not exposed to them.

  • Air should always flow from the cleanest area to the dirtiest. For example, air should flow from the classroom to the hallway into the storage area and out the exhaust, or from the science class to where the chemicals are stored and out the exhaust, or from the hallways to the restrooms and out. “Air should be designed to move to a lower air pressure,” says Prill. “Typically, designers check air flow balance but neglect the flow from clean to dirty air and out.”
  • Be smart about landscape design. Shrubbery should be kept away from the building and less water, fertilizer and herbicides should be used.

Ventilation

“Buildings have to breathe,” Prill says. “Use current guidelines for ventilation in an energy-efficient manner. Use natural ventilation where appropriate as part of an integrated design, but don’t use it as a substitute for pollution control.

Use the best filters you can get.

  • Avoid having your fresh-air intake in an area where it will draw in pollutants, such as near the toilet, kitchen, sewer exhausts or bus parking area.

Avoid duct linings inside the system because they can become contaminated and flake off.

As a final recommendation, Prill says, “Have a written indoor air quality program that everybody can understand, from the administration to the teachers to the operations and maintenance staff to the students. Then, everyone should work together to make it happen.”

Thomas G. Dolan is a freelance writer based in the Pacific Northwest.