Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

ASHRAE Standard 62.1: Problems, Perceptions and Panaceas?

Published

Author(s)

Andrew K. Persily, Dennis Stanke, Gordon Holness, Richard Hermans

Abstract

ASHRAE Standard 62 was first published in 1973, with the title Standards for Natural and Mechanical Ventilation [REF]. The most recent version (designated as 62.1 and titled Ventilation for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality) was published in 2004, with some relatively minor revisions (addenda) added since that time (ASHRAE 2004). Throughout its existence, Standard 62 has generated some degree of controversy for a number of different reasons. At the same time, it has served the building industry and the general public as the most prominent standard on ventilation and indoor air quality (IAQ) in the world.Ventilation requirements for buildings have long been an important design issue addressed by various standards and regulations (Klauss, Tull et al. 1970; Janssen 1999). However, as the issue of IAQ surfaced in the late 1970s and 1980s the context in which these ventilation requirements existed changed significantly and the need arose for more comprehensive design standards that contain more than just ventilation requirements. The inclusion of issues beyond just ventilation requirements, such as outdoor air quality and moisture management, has generated some of the controversy referred to above. Additional issues have been raised with respect to Standard 62 in particular and the role of ASHRAE ventilation and IAQ standards in general. This article attempts to describe some of these issues, the place of Standard 62 in the world of code and regulation, and a few options for addressing some of the concerns that exist.
Citation
Ashrae Journal

Keywords

building codes, indoor air quality, standards, ventilation

Citation

Persily, A. , Stanke, D. , Holness, G. and Hermans, R. (2007), ASHRAE Standard 62.1: Problems, Perceptions and Panaceas?, Ashrae Journal, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=861037 (Accessed March 29, 2024)
Created March 1, 2007, Updated February 19, 2017