About 85 percent of the recently installed HVAC systems in K-12 classrooms studied in California did not provide adequate ventilation, according to a study from the University of California, Davis, and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
For the study, published in the journal Building and Environment, researchers visited 104 classrooms in 11 schools that had been retrofitted with HVAC units in the past three years.
They evaluated the HVAC systems, carbon dioxide concentrations and indoor temperature and humidity through field inspections, monitoring and a teacher survey.
Researchers found only about 15 percent of classrooms met the ventilation standard.
The study also found that about 60 percent of the classrooms were warmer than the recommended average maximum temperature range of 73 F.
Also, 30 percent of the teachers surveyed were dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with the temperature in their classroom.
Cathryn Jakicic is healthcare industries editor of FacilitiesNet.com. For more information on hospital campuses and other medical facilities, check out the FacilitiesNet healthcare page.
