The critical nature of indoor air quality

The importance of indoor air quality cannot be overstated. Long-term and short-term exposure to indoor air pollution can result in a variety of health problems, such as cancer, heart disease, dementia, and respiratory illnesses. The World Health Organisation estimates that 3.8 million people worldwide pass away each year from illnesses linked to contaminated indoor air. Amazingly, the air inside can sometimes be up to 5 times worse than the air outside. Housing Association Magazine’s Joe Bradbury discusses:

Although we frequently associate air pollution with risks encountered outside, we often forget that it is possible for interior air to be contaminated as well. Indoor air quality and human health can be impacted by smoke, vapours, mould, and chemicals found in some paints, furniture, and cleansers.

Due to people spending the majority of their time indoors, buildings have an impact on general wellbeing. More than 1,000 persons in Britain were polled by Ribble Cycles, who discovered that 92% of people’s weekly time was spent indoors. In addition, Brits also confessed that they spend 1 hour, 37 minutes less outside per day in the winter than they do in the summer.

Technology advancements are somewhat to blame, as many people find it difficult to tear themselves away from TVs, smart devices, and consoles for extended periods of time. But thankfully technology is also part of the solution, transforming the great indoors into a healthy environment in which we can thrive.

Researchers in environmental health look into how indoor air quality influences people’s health and wellbeing. According to multiple studies, there are now more air pollutants indoors than in the past, which is caused by things like the chemicals used in household items, poor ventilation, rising temperatures and excess humidity. Even people themselves pollute the air in the form of CO2, human bio-effluents, and biological aerosols like viruses.

n Respiratory issues

On average, 3 people a day die from asthma. There are 5.4 million people (1.1 million children and 4.3 million adults) in Great Britain known to be suffering from the condition… and they are just the ones that came forward for treatment. An untold number battle through their symptoms undiagnosed. The UK has some of the highest asthma rates in Europe.

Every day, the lives of three families are devastated by the death of a loved one to an asthma attack, and tragically two thirds of these deaths are preventable.

Indoor air quality is essential in the treatment and prevention of asthma, along with many other respiratory conditions.

n IAQ-improving technologies

You may have already come across devices aimed at improving IAQ, but I’ll describe how IAQ-improving technologies like air filters and heat recovery ventilation operate in case you haven’t:

MVHR (Mechanical Ventilation with Heat Recovery) provides fresh filtered air into a building whilst retaining most of the energy that has already been used in heating the building. Heat Recovery Ventilation is the solution to the ventilation needs of energy efficient buildings.

The terms “comfort ventilation,” “heat recovery ventilation,” and “mechanical ventilation with heat recovery” (MVHR) all refer to the same thing. A correctly installed heat recovery ventilation system maintains air quality while being virtually undetectable by continuously supplying the home with fresh, filtered air.

An airtight building with effective filtration and ventilation is proven to reduce particle penetration by 78%.

n In summary

Regular maintenance and servicing of all cooking and heating appliances is one strategy to lower indoor pollution. A national programme called Carbon Monoxide - Be Alarmed was started in 2008 to lessen the amount of CO-related illnesses and fatalities.

According to estimates, 15 million families in the UK do not get their fuel-burning equipment regularly service. The two major goals of the programme are to increase the installation of audible CO alarms in homes and to promote routine maintenance of fuelburning appliances.

The dangers of indoor air pollution affect everyone. As an industry, we have the power to ensure the safety of the users and occupants of buildings nationwide.

Although we still have a long way to go, Britain is making brave strides towards a sustainable and healthy future, and it is crucial to address the urgent problem of poor indoor air quality throughout.

This article and other blog’s by Joe Bradbury appear regularly on Mitsubishi Electric’s The Hub, visit les.mitsubishielectric.co.uk/the-hub

Advice on heating savings for social housing providers - from ESi….

Question: With rising utility prices, energy efficiency is on everyone’s minds. How can the latest Smart Controls help deliver energy savings?

With many heating controls being controlled from apps on smart phones and tablets, the ability to control your heating at any time of day and from virtually anywhere means you can be in more control than when you are at home. Modern controls allow you to control several heating zones in the home and control these individually and more accurately so you can easily increase the temperature in the rooms you will use as you head home after work, for example. And you can monitor the temperature levels in different parts of the home, reducing temperatures in rooms that will not be used but leaving enough background heat to keep them comfortable. With energy prices increasing its important to take a close look at every way in which energy can be saved and costs kept to a minimum and this is why ESi controls are OpenTherm compatible. The way OpenTherm works allows far smoother transition of heating control, which reduces energy and saves money. Using OpenTherm will save between 10 and 15% on the gas bill. We will see increased awareness of OpenTherm controls in the next few months as people begin to realise the savings these controls offer when connected to a modern condensing gas boiler.

ESI CONTROLS: www.esicontrols.co.uk

Vent-Axia’s Heat Recovery Retrofit Solution shortlisted at the Unlock Net Zero Awards

Vent-Axia is delighted to announce it has been shortlisted in the Unlock Net Zero Live Awards. The Sussex-based company has reached the final line up in the Innovation of the Year - Product or Service category for its Heat Recovery Retrofit Solution. The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony, taking place alongside Housing 2023, on Tuesday 27 June at Manchester Central.

The inaugural Unlock Net Zero Live Awards seek to recognise and champion progress on the journey to decarbonisation for the UK housing sector and the supply chain that supports it. Vent-Axia’s Heat Recovery Retrofit Solution aims to help deliver decarbonisation in social housing by providing the right ventilation support on the journey to Net Zero Homes by 2050 and healthier homes.

The Heat Recovery Retrofit Solution range consists of decentralised mechanical ventilation with heat recovery (dMVHR) units, which can be used on a room-by-room basis or used together to help maximise energy savings. DMVHR uses the heat from the stale air that is being extracted to warm up the fresh air that is coming in, while also saving energy.

VENT-AXIA: www.vent-axia.com/HeatRecoveryRetrofitSolution

LG heat pumps - the solution for social housing

LG’s new Monobloc ‘S’ has been launched in the UK. As with the original Monobloc, this new model combines the indoor and outdoor features in one module. It’s also connected by only water piping, eliminating the need for refrigerant piping, making this heat pump an installer’s dream when it comes to ease of installation.

Hydronic components like the improved plate heat exchanger, the expansion tank, water pump, flow sensor, pressure sensor, air vent valve and safety valve are all built in - inside the outdoor unit – pre-installed and ready to run. And the R32 Monobloc ‘S’ provides excellent heating performance especially at low ambient temperatures whilst lowering its carbon emissions even more with the use of R32.

The original version was extremely quiet, but this new ‘S’ version is even quieter and up to 9kW units can be installed at the minimum of 4 metres away, and up to 16kW units - up to 5 metres away from neighbouring houses complying with international noise regulations. Installers will love the new Monobloc ‘S’ – the all-in-one concept and reduced weight of the unit makes for easier and quicker installations. The new version requires lower amounts of refrigerant compared to the existing model – 16.7% less in fact – reducing emissions and lessening its environmental impact still further. The new version features LG’s revolutionary R1 Compressor technology which offers advanced efficiency, reliability and operational range due in part to the enhanced tilting motion of the scroll. It offers enhanced operational range – up to 135Hz, a shaft-through structure and support at both ends of the shaft which ensures higher durability and offers bottom compression and simple structure that offers lower noise and vibration, less weight and superior reliability.

LG: partner.lge.com/uk

Price reduction on Stelrad K3 radiators from 1st May

Great news for social housing professionals from leading radiator manufacturer Stelrad Radiators with the news that their sector leading K3 radiators will be reduced in price by over 30% from 1st May 2023. The K3 radiator range offers three panels and three sets of fins to increase the heating capacity of a radiator with the same radiator footprint as a K2 by an additional 50%.

It’s key to remember that radiators are compatible with all heating systems – traditional and renewable - when sized correctly and supported by superior levels of insulation in a home.

K3 radiators have been quite common in mainland Europe for more than 10 years, but have only begun to feature in the UK in the last couple of years in any quantity. Stelrad initially offered just its best-selling Compact radiator in K3 format, but added three more of its radiators designs in a K3 option – its Elite radiators, its Compact with Style and its Planar designs. As heat pumps become more widely accepted and increasingly used in new build developments around the country, the use of K3 radiators is expected to multiply many times over until they are almost the ‘norm’ for UK homes. Much thought has gone into the latest radiator developments and it’s all to ensure that the radiators available from Stelrad are ‘fit for the future’ – able to continue providing the levels of heat required in homes in the UK to keep everyone comfortable.

STELRAD: www.stelrad.com / www.stelrad.ie