Ops Talk Magazine Spring 2014

Choosing the right air filter and filter media By Bob Jackson, CAFS Norspec Filtration Ltd. Poor indoor-air quality (IAQ) is more than just a nuisance; it is costly. Poor IAQ significantly influences the occurrence of communicable respiratory illnesses and allergies, asthma, and sick-building symptoms. Some of the airborne triggers for these illnesses include microorganisms, respirable particles such as dust and smoke, and volatile organic compounds and allergens. In Canada, 5.7 million school children and close to one million teachers, administrators, other school staff and visitors walk into 15,000 school buildings every day – and at least 50 per cent of

these schools have been diagnosed with indoor-air quality problems. Fortunately, many of these triggers can be eliminated or significantly reduced by the proper selection of air filters in a building’s HVAC system. Advances in air filtration have led to the development of systems that provide superior IAQ while reducing energy costs and helping commercial and institutional buildings achieve green-building milestones.

Air Filtration and IAQ In the past, the minimum recommended filter for most school board environ-

DGMAd_D.G. MacLachlan Ltd_ad.qxd 12-03-30 9:44 AM Page 1

ments was a MERV 8. The MERV 8-rated filter ensured an efficiency of 70 per cent to 85 per cent on all airborne particles in the three- to 10-micron size range. More recently, many school board facility managers have raised the minimum efficiency to a MERV 11. The MERV 11 filter ensures an efficiency of greater than 85 per cent on all airborne particles three to 10 microns in size and 65 to 80 per cent efficiency on all airborne particles one to three microns in size. This is still lower than required by CaGBC (Canadian Green Building Council) under their LEED program or by BOMA (Building

D.G. MACLACHLAN LIMITED WHOLESALE LOCKSMITH SUPPLIES & HARDWARE KEY BLANKS • KEY CABINETS • PADLOCKS KEY MACHINES • HIGH SECURITY LOCKS

4050 Grant Street Burnaby, B.C. Canada V5C 3N5 TEL: 604-294-6000

1-800-665-0535 FAX: 604-294-3333

sales@dgmac.com

EVERYTHING FOR THE LOCKSMITH

There for your building maintenance needs We understand education and have been assisting in the design, construction and maintenance of schools for decades. We proudly manufacture many of our products in Western Canada and our experts are ready to help you deal with your simplest or most complex challenge.

If you are: 

Renovating



Repairing



Expanding

Upgrading



We Design, Supply and Install…   

Lockers & Benches Washroom Partitions Washroom Accessories

  

Doors & Frames Door Hardware Visual Boards