How to ensure better ventilation in the workplace

Why ventilation is key to Covid-security

As an airborne pathogen, Covid-19 is primarily spread through microscopic droplets which are carried on the breath of people who are infected. Studies have shown that these microdroplets can linger in the air for hours indoors, waiting to be inhaled by others sharing the space.

To combat this, it’s crucial that environments have good ventilation to ensure a supply of fresh air and prevent the airborne viral load from increasing to a point where people are likely to be infected.

But while this may be important, few of us really know how ventilation works, what is needed and how risks can be avoided.

At MBMS, we maintain and install heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems for a wide range of commercial and residential premises. We’ve been working closely with our clients to keep their systems safe, efficient and operational throughout the pandemic and we’ve become well versed in good ventilation practices.

How ventilation works

It sounds obvious, but the simplest way to ventilate a room is just to open a window. While this can work perfectly well most of the time, there are limitations to how effective this can be: On a cool, breezy day, an open window can quickly fill a small room with fresh air while also letting out air and aerosols which have been exhaled within it. But on a warm, still day, it takes much longer for the air in a room to change.

To encourage the flow of air, you can open windows on either side of a room to help create a current through the environment to whisk away infected microdroplets while they’re airborne.

While this works well in small indoor environments, it’s much harder for larger, busier indoor environments or areas where windows and doors to the outside cannot be opened. For these, a mechanical ventilation system is needed to help the air flow in and out of the space.

The importance of good maintenance

With the whole world focused on Covid-19, it’s easy to forget that there are plenty of other nasty germs and illnesses, including other airborne hazards in the environments we use.

With a large number of business premises having been largely unoccupied and empty for much of the last year, it is therefore crucial that any heating, ventilation or air conditioning system is well maintained and cleaned.

Having been designed for environments which are occupied almost every day, HVAC systems are not meant to be switched off for long periods. When they’re dormant, the ducting, pipework, filters and fans quickly become havens for moulds and they also create breeding environments for germs.

It sounds horrible, but when a system that’s been inactive for weeks or months is switched on, it can effectively scatter spores and germs throughout the environment, making people ill – potentially with symptoms very similar to Covid-19.

Even when they’re in regular use, systems should be frequently serviced and cleaned, and if they’re switched off, this should occur even more often.

As the weather turns colder and we all spend more time indoors, we all want to do what we can to prevent another spike in cases or another dreaded lockdown. We also want to protect ourselves and others from becoming unwell.