Polluted Ducts: A High Impact Threat
In the industrialised nations most people spend their time in buildings rather than outdoors. International studies on indoor and outdoor pollution show that the air indoors is more polluted then the air outside. In fact, research proves explicitly that the air in some buildings is 10 to 100 times more polluted than the air outside!
Research
World Health Organisation (WHO) research has also shown that no less than 30% of public buildings, factories, offices and marine/offshore vessels in the industrialised world have to cope with indoor air quality.
Sick Buildings
These problems manifest themselves for the users of these buildings in so-called Building Related Illnesses (BRI) with symptoms such as headaches, listlessness, excessive weariness, irritations of the mucus membranes and running eyes. These symptoms, and the as yet undetected causes, are also linked to Sick Building Syndrome (SBS). Again research has proved that the cause of 50% of BRI can be found in the Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) system. The pollution present in the HVAC system is one of the most important sources of BRI.
A Dangerous Myth
Tradition says that a System automatically and without maintenance provides a comfortable and safe indoor climate. The recent awareness of BRI and SBS proves that this is a myth.
Conclusion
If the HVAC system is not periodically or maintained adequately, even the most advanced HVAC system causes Building Related Illnesses.
