Carbon Monoxide Alarms Now Required in All Dwelling Units
ATLANTA — ASHRAE’s newly-published residential IAQ standard removes the default leakage-rate assumption and also requires carbon monoxide (CO) alarms.
The 2013 version, ANSI/ASHRAE Standard 62.2-2013, Ventilation and Acceptable Indoor Air Quality in Low-Rise Residential Buildings, defines the roles of, and minimum requirements for, mechanical- and natural-ventilation systems and the building envelope intended to provide acceptable IAQ in low-rise residential buildings.
One of the biggest changes in the standard over the 2010 version is an increase in mechanical ventilation rates to 7.5 cfm per person plus 3 cfm per 100 square feet. This is due to the earlier removal of the default assumption regarding natural infiltration.