Ventilation

Air Quality Method
Designing for acceptable indoor air quality requires that we address:

  • Outdoor air quality
  • Design of the ventilation system
  • Sources of contaminants
  • Proper air filtration
  • System operation and maintenance

Determine the number of people occupying the respective building spaces. Find the CFM/person requirements in Ventilation Rates for Acceptable Indoor Air Quality (see below). Calculate the required outdoor air volume as follows:

People = Occupancy/1000 x Floor Area (ft2)
CFM = People x Outdoor Air Requirement (CFM/person)

Outdoor air quantities can be reduced to lower levels if proper particulate and gaseous air filtration equipment is utilized.

Air Change Method
Find total volume of space to be ventilated. Determine the required number of air changes per hour.

CFM = Bldg. Volume (ft3)/Air Change Frequency

Consult local codes for air change requirements or, in absence of code, refer to “Suggested Air Changes” (see below).

Heat Removal Method
When the temperature of a space is higher than the ambient outdoor temperature, general ventilation may be utilized to provide “free cooling”. Knowing the desired indoor and the design outdoor dry bulb temperatures, and the amount of heat removal required (BTU/Hr):

CFM = Heat Removal (BTU/Hr)/(1.10 x Temp diff)


Ventilation Rates for Acceptable Air Quality

Type of Space Outdoor Air Required
(CFM/person)

Occupancy
(People/10000ft2)

Auditoriums 15 150
Ballrooms/Discos 25 100
Bars 30 100
Beauty Shops 25 25
Classrooms 15 50
Conference Rooms 20 50
Correctional Facility Cells 20 20
Dormitory Sleeping Rooms 15 20
Dry Cleaners 30 30
Gambling Casinos 30 120
Game Rooms 25 70
Hardware Stores 15 8
Hospital Operating Rooms 30 20
Hospital Patient Rooms 25 10
Laboratories 20 30
Libraries 15 20
Medical Procedure Rooms 15 20
Office Spaces 20 7
Pharmacies 15 20
Photo Studios 15 10
Physical Therapy 15 20
Restaurant Dining Areas 20 70
Retail Facilities 15 20
Smoking Lounges 60 70
Sporting Spectator Areas 15 150
Supermarkets 15 8
Theaters 15 150

Suggested Air Changes

Type of Space Air Change Frequency
(minutes)
Assembly Halls 3-10
Auditoriums 4-15
Bakeries 1-3
Boiler Rooms 2-4
Bowling Alleys 2-8
Dry Cleaners 1-5
Engine Rooms 1-1.5
Factories (General) 1-5
Forges 1-2
Foundries 1-4
Garages 2-10
Generating Rooms 2-5
Glass Plants 1-2
Gymnasiums 2-10
Heat Treat Rooms 0.5-1
Kitchens 1-3
Laundries 2-5
Locker Rooms 2-5
Machine Shops 3-5
Mills (Paper) 2-3
Mills (Textile) 5-15
Packing Houses 2-15
Recreation Rooms 2-8
Residence 2-5
Restaurants 5-10
Retail Stores 3-10
Shops (General) 3-10
Theaters 3-8
Toilets 2-5
Transformer Rooms 1-5
Turbine Rooms 2-6
Warehouses 2-10