Know the Quality of Air You are Breathing

Indoor Air Quality Audit

IAQ Audit Parameters

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Our Packages

Package 1

Basic parameters plus Particulate Matter (PM), which, can pass from our lungs into our blood supply and be carried throughout our bodies thereby making them โ€œthe invisible killerโ€. It is essential to monitor its levels closely.

Testing Parameters

PM2.5, PM 10, CO2, Temperature & Humidity

Package 2

Package 1 plus VOC & Formaldehyde. Most of the indoor products are a source of dangerous toxic Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) including most common one – Formaldehyde. Monitors their levels regularly and safe guard.

Testing Parameters

Formaldehyde, VOC, PM2.5, PM 10, CO2, Temperature & Humidity

Indoor Air Quality Audit Parameters

1. Temperature and Humidity

Proper temperature is the basic indoor air requirement. Relative humidity is the ratio of the current absolute humidity to the highest possible absolute humidity (which depends on the current air temperature).
Indoor Sources: Lack of ventilation, poorly maintained home.

Harmful Effects: Microbiological growth, sweating at normal temperature, skin irritation, eye dryness.

Temperature Acceptable levels: 20ยฐC to 25ยฐC (Excellent)
Relative Humidity Acceptable levels: 30% to 60%

2. Respirable Suspended Particulate Matter (RSPM) or PM (Particulate Matter)

RSPM / PM is tiny pieces of extremely fine liquids & solids that get mixed in air that we inhale. The smaller the PM, the more harmful it is; it then gets deeper into our lungs and even into our bloodstream and cause great damage to our body and system. The particulate matters are classified on the basis of their size.

a) Coarse dust particles (PM10) are 2.5 to 10 micrometers in diameter. These tiny particles which are about 30 times smaller than the width of a hair on your head are small enough to get inhaled past our defensive nose hairs and into our lungs.
b) Fine particles (PM2.5) are 2.5 micrometers in diameter or smaller. While PM10’s story ends at the lungs, PM2.5 can pass from our lungs into our blood supply and be carried throughout our bodies thereby making them “the invisible killer”
Indoor Sources: Sources: Indoor sources of fine particles include tobacco smoke, cooking (e.g., frying, sautรฉing, and broiling), burning candles or oil lamps, and operating fireplaces and fuel-burning space heaters (e.g., kerosene heaters).
Harmful Effects: Acute and chronic effects to the respiratory and cardiovascular systems with a variety of human health including Respiratory Illness, asthma, COPD, lung cancer.
PM 2.5 Acceptable levels: upto 25 ฮผg/m3
PM 10 Acceptable levels: upto 50 ฮผg/m3

3. Carbon Dioxide (CO2)

CO2 is a by-product of combustion, as well as a result of the metabolic process in living organisms. At room temperature, carbon dioxide is a colourless, odourless, faintly acidic-tasting, non-flammable gas.
Indoor Sources: Released from body via the lungs in the exhaled air. CO2 is also released when fossil fuels are burned. Carbon dioxide can reach high levels of concentration in poorly ventilated buildings and areas where room dividers restrict air flow.
Harmful Effects: Headaches, dizziness, nausea, asphyxiation, and lethargic conditions.
Carbon Dioxide Acceptable levels: upto – 800 ppm

4. Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)

VOCs are emitted as gases from certain solids or liquids. VOCs include a variety of chemicals, some of which have short- and long-term adverse health effects. Concentrations of many VOCs are consistently higher indoors (up to 10 times more) than outdoors.
Indoor Sources: Paints, varnishes and wax; all containing organic solvents, as do many cleaning, disinfecting, cosmetic and hobby products.
Harmful Effects: Eye, nose, and throat irritation, skin rashes, nausea, and can also damage the liver, kidney, and central nervous system. Other common symptoms include frequent headaches.

5. Formaldehyde (CH2O)

CH2O gas is colourless flammable and highly reactive at room temperature. Formaldehyde poses a great health threat because of the out gassing that occurs in new products and persists for many years. Formaldehyde settles in small cavities within the products. Over time the harmful vapours are discharged into the air. Formaldehyde irritates the mucous membranes of human beings, and high concentrations are intolerable.

Indoor Sources: It is a component in building materials, foam insulations, plywood, particle boards, concretes, plasters, building furnishings, carpets, furniture, draperies, plastics, adhesives, paper goods, grocery bags, facial tissues, towels, and milk cartons, household cleaners, disinfectants, automobile bodies, clothes, permanent-press, stiffening agents, wrinkle retardants, water repellents, fire retardants, cigarette smoke, fuels, natural gas, coal or kerosene, cosmetics, toothpaste, soaps, deodorants, food additives, and germicides and fungicides for plants and vegetables.
Harmful Effects: Body will experience difficulty with swallowing and dry mouth. Other problems occur in breathing passages. Some of the problems associated with formaldehyde include respiratory problems, headaches, dizziness, nosebleeds, shortness of breath, coughing, wheezing, and chronic respiratory disease, digestive tract problems, vomiting, irritation to the eyes (burning), skin (pain and rash), memory lapse and depression.
Formaldehyde Acceptable levels: upto 0.1 mg/m3

6. Ozone (O3)

O3 is a widespread outdoor air pollutant. It reacts with VOC and Nox to form a chemical reaction affecting indoor air quality.
Indoor Sources: Ozone emission devices like photocopying, air purifying, disinfecting devices, etc. It can also cause photochemical reactions from outdoor sources entering the room through natural/mechanical ventilation and infiltrates from cracks in the building envelope system.
Harmful Effects: Exposure to Ozone leads to respiratory problems, impaired lung function, local or systemic inflammation, cardiovascular disease, and cancer in human beings.
Ozone Acceptable levels: upto 100 mg/m3

7. Carbon Monoxide (CO)

CO is a colourless, non-irritant, odourless and tasteless toxic gas. It is produced by the incomplete combustion of carbonaceous fuels such as wood, petrol, coal, natural gas and kerosene. It is emitted by motor vehicles, heating and cooking appliances, and cigarette smoke.
Indoor Sources: Emissions from faulty, incorrectly installed, poorly maintained or ventilated cooking or heating appliances, fireplaces and tobacco smoking. Incomplete oxidation during combustion may cause high concentrations of carbon monoxide in indoor air.
Harmful Effects: Since carbon monoxide limits oxygen to the body, it causes headaches, lethargic conditions, blurred vision, lack of oxygen to the brain, and abnormalities in the heart.
Carbon Monoxide Acceptable levels: upto 35 mg/m3

Acceptable Indoor Air Quality Audit Parameters

Temperature

Acceptable levels:
20ยฐC to 25ยฐC (Excellent)

Relative Humidity

Acceptable levels:
30% to 60%

Carbon Dioxide

Acceptable levels:
upto ~ 800 ppm

PM 2.5

Acceptable levels:
upto 25 ฮผg/m3

PM 10

Acceptable levels:
upto 50 ฮผg/m3

Formaldehyde

Acceptable levels:
upto 0.1 mg/m3

Ozone

Acceptable levels:
upto 100 ฮผg/m3

Carbon Monoxide

Acceptable levels:
upto 35 mg/m3
* References for Acceptable Levels โ€“ WHO, OSHA, ASHRAE, IAQ Management Group, Hong Kong
* Click the link for National Ambient Air Quality Standards, Central Pollution Control Board, GOI
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Know Your Home Air

Gas heating systems, leaking chimneys, fire places emits carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide and other harmful pollutants. Plastics and common household cleaners, paints, paint thinner often placed under the kitchen sink, release Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), when used and stored. Overheating of non-stick cookware releases toxic fumes. Pesticides we use in and around the home also release various chemical and semi-volatile compounds.

Kitchen

Harmful effects
Carbon monoxide causes headache, dizziness and fatigue. These often cause eye, nose, and throat irritation, nausea, and can also damage the liver, kidney, and central nervous system. Fine particles are produced during all kinds of combustion which lead to acute and chronic effects to respiratory and cardiovascular systems.

Pet dander and hair, carpet, rugs, upholstery furniture are main source of dust mites, fungus, and bacteria. A dirty filter of air conditioners acts as a reservoir for dirt, dust and other airborne contaminants that are continuously circulated back into your breathing air. Secondhand smoke from cigarettes, other tobacco products and mosquito coil emits VOC’s and formaldehyde and various particulate matters. CO2 released from our lungs is exhaled in the air which pollutes the air if the place is too crowded or there is less ventilation.

Livingroom

Harmful effects
All these can trigger coughing, nosebleeds, shortness of breath, dry mouth, vomiting,
digestive tract problems, depression, allergy and asthma attacks, and other respiratory illness.

Shower, faucets and other water sources are main cause of humidity and mold. Bathroom cleaners and personal care products like toothpaste, soaps, facial tissues, detergent, fabric softeners, air fresheners, deodorizers, hair sprays, disinfectants, are full of VOC’s and chemicals which emits harmful pollutants.

Bathroom

Harmful effects
Mold can cause allergic reactions, asthma and other respiratory ailments. VOC’s and toxic chemicals released in the bathroom can causes eye, nose, and throat irritation, nausea and respiratory problems. All these products release harmful pollutants while they are used also when they are stored.

A bedroom contains many sources of indoor air pollution. Mattress, pillow and blankets, soft toys, are the reservoirs of dust mites, fungi and bacteria. Furniture, carpets, paints and beauty product like hairspray, nail polishes, perfumes, deodorants etc off gas VOC, formaldehyde and toxic gases into the air.

Bedroom

Harmful effects
These pollutants make the air unhealthy which leads to allergy, asthma attacks, dizziness, headache, fatigue and other respiratory ailments.

Second-hand smoke
Second hand Smoke is a mixture of the smoke given off by the burning of tobacco products, such as cigarettes, cigars or pipes and the smoke exhaled by smokers. Secondhand smoke is also called environmental tobacco smoke (ETS). Passive smoking can lead to coughing, excess phlegm, and chest discomfort. NCI (National Cancer Institute) also notes that spontaneous abortion (miscarriage), cervical cancer, sudden infant death syndrome, low birth weight, nasal sinus cancer, decreased lung function, exacerbation of cystic fibrosis, and negative cognitive and behavioral effects in children have been linked to ETS. Secondhand smoke exposure commonly occurs indoors, particularly in homes and cars. Secondhand smoke can move between rooms of a home and between apartment units.

Guest Bathroom

Central heating and cooling systems and humidification devices
The air filter in your HVAC system is the front line of defense against poor indoor air quality. A typical central heating and cooling system circulates over 1,000 cubic feet per minute of air through the filter. This means the entire air volume in your house passes through the filter multiple times every day. A dirty filter, however, can actually make indoor air quality worse by acting as a reservoir for dirt, dust and other airborne contaminants that are continuously circulated back into your breathing air. In addition to driving up your utility bill, a clogged air filter will allow all that dust and debris that should be filtered out to be re-circulated back into your home. This can cause chronic allergies and especially be dangerous for people with asthma or other respiratory conditions.

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