Indoor Air Quality IAQ Issue

GBE > Encyclopaedia > Code > Issues > G#1119 N#1135

Indoor Air Quality IAQ Issue
About:

Airtightness

As we move towards zero carbon buildings this means we will be making building envelopes more wind and airtight.
Air tightness testing of building envelope becomes essential for them to work efficiently.
Building Regulations requires an airtightness pass rate of 10 (a very leaky building) at 50 pascals
An 8 will be noisy and have drafts through windows and papers will be blown from tables
UK construction can be as bad as 27 (the worst GBE has heard about)
Scandinavia and mainland EU can achieve 1 and down to 0.1
Passivhaus German Energy standard requires 0.6 for new build and 1.0 for refurbishment

Consequences:

Airtightness levels of 5 at 50 pascals without ventilation begins to become unhealthy, at 3 dangerously so.

Ventilation:

Whole House Mechanical Ventilation (WHMV) is possible energy inefficient solution
Mechanical Ventilation with Heat Recovery (MVHR) is possible efficient solution.
MVHR becomes important to refresh air and save the heat
Passive Ventilation with Heat Recovery (PVHR) can improve performance of old building with open flues
Passive ventilation is probably inadequate to deal with indoor air quality since some vents are activated with moisture detection and ignore smells and other gases in the air
Passive ventilation is inadequately understood and often leads to failures
Fluid dynamics can be used to understand how designs will fail and how they can be improved before building.

IAQ Indoor Air Quality

The problem is often down to the off-gassing from adhesives, paints, plastics, etc. from furniture, finishes and decoration.
PVC off-gasses phthalates
Paints off-gas VOCs Volatile Organic Compounds
Some manufacturers have developed Low VOC paints, often water based in place of solvents, but they add more hostile chemicals to make them perform as well as high VOC paints
Furniture made of timber panel products often use Formaldehyde adhesives bonding the ply and fibres.
Design with Green and healthy materials is all the more important to avoid VOCs.

Condensation and mould

Thermal bridges (=Cold bridges in UK and Warm bridges in EU)
Thermal bridges often create cold spots and when conditions are humid condensation can form on these cold areas of otherwise warm surfaces.
Moisture build ups set off ever-present spores and surface mould develop these in turn generate spores that get into the air and into the respiratory system.
Asthma is on the rise in the UK and has risen to seriously high levels.
In America they have reached a position where mould-ridden buildings have become so toxic they are condemned from entry.
These become hazardous to clean, hazardous to demolish and generate hazardous waste.

Avoiding Condesnation

Hygroscopicity and moisture mass can help to minimise the condensation risks and avoid the mould development.
GAIA Architects in Edinburgh are exponents of moisture mass and make use of clay plasters to minimise condensation risks.
GAIA I am sure will share their knowledge on the subject and their know-how in their use
Sandy Halliday Sandy@gaiagroup.org
Howard Liddel RIP

Who know what?

IAQ is discussed quite a bit by consultants, test houses and kit manufacturers at Sustainability Live exhibition
But its not taken seriously until legislation drives it.
In Europe and UK there appears to be little or no legislation addressing IAQ Indoor air quality which can have adverse affects upon health and wellbeing.

Other legislation that indirectly affects IAQ

Cavity wall insulation that generates urea formaldehyde has been controlled by Building Regulations
Radon (radio active gases rising from granites) in parts of UK were discovered to enter building and Gas Proof Membranes (GPM) and Courses (GPC) were introduced to prevent them entering buildings from the ground.
Preservative treatments are controlled to some degree by legislation
Creosote and Copper Chrome Arsenate (CCA) preservative treatment is controlled in residential use and in particular in garden construction associated with food growing due to the risk of leachates getting into the food chain.
Occupational exposure limits (OEL) of say painters are set and monitored by the Health and Safety Executive (H&SE)
Painters using Solvent based paint should use breathing apparatus if working for more than 30 minutes.
Specifiers should review the Health and Safety data sheets of paints, other coatings, products and decide to avoid subjecting painters to these gasses, etc.
World Health Organisation (WHO) report painting is a very unhealthy career and its worse for women.

REACH Regulations

REACH requires declaration of all materials used by manufacturers but does not restrict their use.
However it appears to beginning to have teeth
See http://www.greenspec.co.uk/eu-reach-regulation.php
See ToxList below.

Hazardous materials

CHIP controls transportation of hazardous materials
Construction (Design and Management) Regulations (CDM) requires designers to consider health and safety risks associated with construction and maintenance of their designed buildings.
Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) controls the use of substances hazardous to health
Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) restricts the use of hazardous substances in the manufacture of electrical and lighting components
Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) restricts the carriage, treatment, deconstruction of waste electronic and electrical equipment
Hazardous Waste Regulation control the transportation, pre-treatment and disposal of hazardous materials before disposal.
Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS) Control on the use of Ozone Depleting Substances often used in foamed plastics thermal insulation, are now treated as a hazardous material but often slip through the controls.
Asbestos Regulation control the use of asbestos in manufacturing, construction and restrict particulate levels in the atmosphere and control the removal and disposal at Stable Non-Reactive hazardous waste sites.
Other fibrous materials that release particulate into the atmosphere are controlled also.
Acoustic and thermal insulation fibres can get into air and be carried into buildings, enclosure in acoustically transparent fabrics and aluminium
For a long time painting and resinous products (often concoctions of chemicals) did not need to go through any scrutiny before being released into the market place unlike medicines and yet we are infused by them through breathing their gasses in the atmosphere.
However paints are now controlled by setting maximum levels of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) permitted to sell them in EU.

European Waste Catalogue

In 2004 240 materials were reclassified as hazardous when waste, these are listed in the European Waste Catalogue a UK version of this exists.
Virtually all substances that are liquid, flow, sticky or gooey are included. Paints, stains, waxes, oils, sealants, resins, are examples.
foils is commonplace in ceiling voids.

BRE Green Guide to Specification

In the UK BRE’s Green Guide to Specification expressly states it does not address IAQ, without explanation or justification.
BREs Green Guide actually drives material choice towards conventional materials and allegedly identifies ‘green’ materials but in NGS’s view identifies the ‘least violet’ of the ‘violet’ materials.
http://www.thegreenguide.org.uk/
D Crump at BRE England was part of an EU funded project looking at IAQ and product labels but its involvement seems not have informed anything it does.
BRE probably know about IAQ and have a fair bit of information about it, But Green Guide ignores it.
BRE do indoor conditions testing (heat humidity coolth testing) in their rigs, paid for by clients and designers.

PERFECTION Project

The project considers health, comfort and safety (including accessibility) of the indoor environment.
BRE Scotland is involved in PERFECTION Project.
BRE is currently involved in an EU research project under the Framework FP7.
This project is being undertaken across a number of countries in the EU.
The Project (short name – PERFECTION) is a coordination action for which the main objective is the development of a framework and a set of indicators concerning the overall quality of the indoor environment of buildings.
The main focus is on issues such as comfort, health and safety, but also accessibility, positive stimulation of people and sustainability will be covered.
The long-term aim of PERFECTION is to help enabling the application of new building design and technologies that improve the impact of the indoor built environment on the human well being.
More details are on the project web site – http://www.ca-perfection.eu/.
Part of the project involves assessing stakeholder opinion on the relative importance of various indicators. As such a questionnaire has been developed to seek expert opinion.
The questionnaire could be completed via telephone interview, face to face meeting or by electronic means (i.e. we will email it to you).
Contact: Dr Stephen L Garvin
Construction Director, BRE Scotland
Scottish Enterprise Technology Park, East Kilbride, G75 0RD
T +44 (0) 1355 576242
M +44 (0) 7772228721
E garvins@bre.co.uk
W www.bre.co.uk

IAQ Testing

UK companies make the testing kit
http://www.ppm-technology.com/products.htm
John B Jones, Managing Director
PPM Technology Ltd., Unit 34, Cibyn Ind.Est., Caernarfon, LL55 2BD. Wales, U.K.
Tel : +44 (0)1286 676 999
Skype : ppmtechltd

EU Consumer Council

ran a conference in 2008 in Brussells
NGS attended (have most of the presentation PDFs)
They pointing out that EU Technical Committees developing Environmental Profiling (EP) & Environmental Product Declarations (EPD) standards are populated by a weight of manufacturers who want BAU Business As Usual.
These companies driven by reducing costs opt to use cheap materials and methods of manufacture which often include synthetics which often cause off gassing and make unhealthy buildings.
The EP & EPD standard would ignore IAQ but the Consumer Council have said ‘ignore IAQ and we will recommend Consumers (public and design professionals) to ignore EPD and EP’
Surveys have shown that the consumers don’t understand EP and EPD or they think they are complicated, so a little encouragement and they will ignore them altogether.

Product labels

Most of the EU green labels identify products with natural characteristics conducive to good health.
These labels come about as consumers and scientists fight back against unhealthy practices by manufacturers of materials and their use in buildings.
IAQ is part of most of these labels.
One American label does too.

Product Databases

There are databases of healthy materials, low allergy materials, natural and green materials but mainstream industry and designers are not interested in woolly green ideas and often are unaware of the existence of them.
Some of the databases and labels:
There are many databases and lables in Europe

You may be familiar with these:

EU eco label http://www.eco-label.com/
- (PDF about it)
White swan (Nordic) http://www.svanen.nu/Default.aspx?tabName=StartPage
- (PDF about it)
Products: http://www.svanen.nu/Default.aspx?tabName=ProductsEng&menuItemID=7068
Blue Angel http://www.blauer-engel.de/en/index.php
- (PDF about it)

You are less likely to know these:

NaturePlus (Germany) www.natureplus.de
- (numerous PDF about it)
Klima:Activ (Austria) Energy and IAQ
- (PDF about it)
IBO (Austria) OBOX & Ixbau combined = baubook http://www.baubook.at/
- (PDF about it)
Minergie (Switzerland) Minergie Eco www.minergie.ch
- Standards: http://www.minergie.ch/tl_files/download_en/Faltblatt_Minergie_Standard_e.pdf
GAIA (Scotland) has a database of low allergy products
There is a database of products in the USA
Healthy Flooring Network http://www.healthyflooring.org/
Alternatives: http://www.healthyflooring.org/alternatives.html
Suppliers: http://www.healthyflooring.org/suppliers.html
‘One Eco Home’
- Helen Mudie & Kate Millibank ran a shop in west Londontheir website was a good starting point
- Have they gone out of business? Sadly they stopped trading.
- W www.oneecointeriors.co.uk
USA
Products permitted in US schools
http://www.greenguard.org/DesktopModules/GGCertificationSchoolsPrint.aspx?productId=400

GBE CPD files:

One Eco Interiors,
Eco Furniture Labels

Other sources of information

Oliver Heath’s book Urban Eco Chic addresses all of these issues from a domestic perspective.

Campaigns

The Association Sustainable Building Products (ASBP) and Good Homes Alliance (GHA) are starting to fight back against the BREs Green Guide and talking to DCLG Government about the Code for Sustainable Homes (CfSH) forcing us to use bad materials.
CfSH is being phased out.
ASBP were seeking funding with the help of the NNFCC National Non-Food Crop Centre, to pay for research to prove the true properties of the green materials.
(NNFCC no longer have Construction on their agenda)
NGS was part of the ASBP and publish all its own outputs.
- http://www.scribd.com/doc/33900411/Critique-of-BRE-Green-Guide-To-Specification-in-words-rev-A03-see-also-PowerPoint-file
- http://www.scribd.com/doc/17023348/Critique-of-BREs-Green-Guide-Presented-to-Design-Professionals-and-Construction-mixed-audiences-See-also-45-page-report
Women’s Environment Network (WEN) http://www.wen.org.uk/
- Helen Lynn, Laureen Benton
- health@wen.org.uk
Pesticides Action Network (PAN): anti carpet treatment, anti moth repellent, etc.
- http://www.pan-uk.org/
- http://www.pan-uk.org/contact-us/general/pesticide-action-network-uk
- 54-64 Leonard Street
- Development House
- London
- EC2A 4LT
- T 02070650905
- F 02070650907

CAP’EM Cycle Assessment Procedure for Eco Materials

CAP’EM www.capem.eu is a 4 year Interreg part-funded EU funded project to develop a simplified LCA to evaluate eco materials,
will post their LCA data on a website a search and compare facility,
add more products to NGS website and promote the materials and their use.
IAQ will be a characteristic taken seriously in CAP’EM.

Investigation:

EU Consumer Councils views need to be explore
UK Consumer Councils views to explore

Ska-Ratings

Ska-Ratings Office Fit-out/Re-fit EAM

Design and Detailing for Toxic Chemical Reduction in Buildings

SEDA have published 3 guides
http://www.seda.uk.net/design_guides.html
Design and Detailing for Deconstruction
Design and Detailing for Airtightness
Design and Detailing for Toxic Chemical Reduction in Buildings

Green Public Procurement

Defra called a public consultation meeting with the furniture Industry to help develop UK standards for GPP Government Public Procurement to exceed EU GPP requirements.
NGS will forward PDF of presentations when they are made available
EU GPP information is available from OJU website.
NGS have forwarded some information already to KF 26/11/09
A full public consultation will occur soon I will be on mailing list will forward to KF when it arrives.

ToxList

Compiled by Peter Rouifrok in Holland
pruifrok@wanadoo.nl
www.toxlist.com
http://toxlist.com/searchotherdatabases.html
http://www.greenspec.co.uk/eu-reach-regulation.php

Updated: 27th November 2009, 10th October 2011, 20th November 2011, 29th September 2013

Email request from ex student 25/03/2010

Hi Brian
Thank you for the info. Ive been told by tutor that my project lacks actual evidence from ‘independent peer group research’ The companies or people that I have quoted from or researched could be conceived as people ‘with an axe to grind’ or rather they have green credentials etc.

She believes that I need some scientific and independent, British evidence that indoor air quality in modern day buildings is dangerous because of the materials used and future air tightness levels.

Can you help please? Thank you.
Regards,
Karla

Manufacturers

want Status Quo to prevail so there will be no help there.

National Statistics Office

For worker absentee rate data and labour days lost
And data on impact on GDP
Sick Building Syndrome stats if any exists

National Health Service statistics

Environmental impacts
(Holby City, Casualty and ‘House’ on the TV often have house visits to determine environmental causes of ailments)
Asthma and carpets
Asthma and bed bugs
Cleaning goods

Cleaning goods manufacturers

Ecover (vested interest?) may have access to the data you need

Health and Safety Executive

data on Permitted Occupational Exposure Limits

Any consultancy that does IAQ surveys

Satistics if any
KilTox (vested interest?)

British Standards Committees

Improving standards to reduce IAQ issues
Some committee members will be against the green objectives

DEFRA

OGC and GPP standards and specifications driving down chemicals in products
They do not do this for fun, there is a reason

EU Consumer Council

UK Consumer Council

British Allergy Foundation Seal of Approval (vested interest?)

They have a reason for doing it they may have data

WEN Women’s Environment Network (vested interest? I cannot see one)

They may have access to the data you need health@wen.org.uk

PAN Pesticides Action Network (vested interest? cannot see one)

They may have access to the data you need

SEDA

May refer to some in the book

GAIA

They may have access to the data you need

Manufacturers of IAQ toxicity level detectors

Carbon Monoxide detectors already exist
Carbon Dioxide detectors are used to activate ventilation systems

Passivhaus Institute (Germany)

Website may have data

Information Paper IP6/05 – Ventilation and Indoor Air Quality in Schools.

A study was undertaken to provide baseline information on the ventilation rates and IAQ currently achieved in a sample of post-1995 primary school classrooms across England.
This information paper discusses the results of the study.
Price: £10.50(inc. p&p*)
BRE Report and Information Papers
Order Online

VOCs and contaminated land

May have a bearing on IAQ?
Verification reports and contaminated land, a LACL event, 24 March 2010, London. More…
VOCs – assessment and remediation, a LACL event, 14 April 2010, Scotland. More…
Dealing with contamination existing residential developments, a LACL event, 20 April 2010, Kingswood. More…
Environmental liability in brownfield projects, a BRMF event, 15 April 2010, London. More…
Wed, 24 Mar 2010 06:15:03 -0400

BRE Trust report FB23 The Real Cost of Poor housing

This may not relate to IAQ, I do not know.
Costs to the NHS £600m and the society as a whole £1.5 bn
This is of building with hazards: unsafe hazards and unhealthy
Injury rates and treatment costs related
National Housing Health and Safety Rating System
English House Condition Survey
BREs team: Maggie Davidson, Mike Roys, Simon Nicol
Uni of Warwick: David Ormandy
Uni of Brighton: Peter Ambrose