| In office buildings all across the country, | | | | buildings, especially high rises, have no |
| employees come to work feeling fine and leave | | | | windows to let in fresh air and sometimes no |
| the office feeling ill and lethargic. This | | | | doors that lead directly outside. |
| doesn't necessarily mean that these employees | | | | |
| are sick of their jobs, but in many cases it | | | | How to alleviate sick building syndrome |
| does mean that their job is literally making | | | | |
| them sick due to what is called "sick | | | | Portable air conditioners don't utilize the |
| building syndrome." | | | | ducting and can be set up quickly for |
| | | | temporary use. Portable air conditioners |
| Sick building syndrome is caused by molds, | | | | offer more than just cool air; they condition |
| monoxides, and other pollutants that lurk in | | | | the air, filtering out contaminants as the |
| air conditioning vents and behind walls. The | | | | air circulates through the system. If you |
| result can be deadly in extreme cases; the | | | | find that the portable air conditioners have |
| rest of the time, sick building syndrome | | | | improved the overall health in the office, |
| produces unmotivated, unhappy employees who | | | | it's a good bet that there is some form of |
| wonder why they literally feel sick coming to | | | | irritant in the central air ducting that is |
| work. | | | | the root cause of the problem. |
| | | | |
| How can you tell if your office could have | | | | However, if the building has no form of |
| "sick building syndrome" | | | | outside ventilation, a portable air |
| | | | conditioner will still be recycling the air |
| If you suspect that people in your office | | | | in the space. If conditions are too severe, |
| could be suffering adverse health affects, | | | | you may want to consider moving to a building |
| contact an HVAC specialist to check for | | | | with more ventilation. Find out from your |
| contaminants in your building's air | | | | building superintendent how many cubic feet |
| conditioning vents. If the vents and ducts | | | | of fresh air the central air conditioning is |
| are dirty or the specialists believes that | | | | pulling in per minute and divide that by the |
| the walls may be hiding molds, spores, or | | | | number of people in the office. According to |
| other dangerous contaminants, stop using the | | | | HVAC professionals, 20 cubic feet of fresh |
| central air system immediately and have a | | | | air per person is ideal. |
| specialist install portable air conditioners | | | | |
| to cool and circulate air through the | | | | If employees feel tired and ill when they |
| building. | | | | come to work, don't necessarily chalk it up |
| | | | to poor attitudes and disinterest in the job. |
| How buildings become "sick" | | | | As any CEO or president knows, people are |
| | | | the greatest asset of any company. Taking |
| There are countless different contaminants in | | | | measures to ensure that their working |
| and around buildings, from asbestos in older | | | | environment is healthy and safe is an |
| office buildings, to the mold that has been | | | | essential part of building a positive, |
| mushrooming since last year's, water pipe | | | | thriving business. |
| leak. Add to this the fact that most office | | | | |