When the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published its seminal report to Congress on Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) in 1989, the HVAC industry raced to provide products and services that would help improve the quality of the air in homes and businesses alike. Almost overnight, the public became concerned with ventilation, filtration, and humidity control issues, and contractors and manufacturers scrambled to find solutions to the sometimes complex problems associated with IAQ.
Since then, associations, such as ASHRAE, and individual states, including California and New Jersey, have put forward standards and regulations that address IAQ issues, but the definition of IAQ still remains somewhat nebulous. Perhaps that is because so many factors affect IAQ — everything from poor ventilation and high (or low) humidity to pesticides, mold, and radon. In addition, it can be a challenge to quantify proper IAQ, particularly when occupants in a space have varying tolerances to different contaminants and irritants.