News Items

News Item - March 2006

"New UK building regulations for ventilation made law."

As part of the UK government's increased commitment to tackling climate change - the provision for ensuring adequate ventilation in new and existing buildings has now been recognized and incorporated into new building regulations coming into force on April 6th 2006.

Housing and Planning Minister Yvette Cooper stated "Tackling climate change is one of the biggest long-term challenges we face. That is why on this occasion we need the building industry to comply with the new regulations much more rapidly than normal. These new regulations, combined with those in 2002, deliver a 40 per cent increase in energy efficiency standards in just four years, and cut householders' fuel bills too." *

'Build Tight Ventilate Right'

With the increased emphasis on energy efficiency building and design has come the awareness of the importance of providing adequate ventilation for occupants of such buildings. Part F "Ventilation" of the new UK building regulations states:

"Ventilation is required for one or more of the following purposes:

• a. provision of outside air for breathing;
• b. dilution and removal of airborne pollutants, including odours;
• c. control of excess humidity (arising from water vapour in the indoor air); and
• d. provision of air for fuel burning appliances." **

As we build more energy efficient buildings, the importance of providing adequate ventilation to avoid "sick building syndrome" is now becoming officially recognized throughout the world. Document F details the four approved methods of achieving such ventilation as follows:

• Background ventilators and intermittent extract fans;
• Passive stack ventilation;
• Continuous mechanical extract; and
• Continuous mechanical supply and extract with heat recovery.

Read the UK Government news release. *  pub. February 7th 2006.

Download document Part F "Ventilation" **  pub.  15 March 2006.