Indoor air quality is nothing to sneeze at for small businesses

It’s spring in eastern and Central Pennsylvania, which means that the region’s notoriously high pollen count is likely aggravating even the toughest of sinuses.

The sound of sneezes are echoing through the offices of most businesses, large and small this time of year.

Seasonal allergies can cause misery anywhere, but what if the workplace is making it even worse?

And what if it isn’t even seasonal allergies that are causing those blowing noses and itchy eyes that coworkers are complaining about?

Poor indoor air quality can be causing many of the most common health complaints employees have on the job, and small businesses are often the most vulnerable to the problem.

The majority of office buildings being constructed today, especially by those seeking green building certifications, put a strong emphasis on indoor air quality, making sure systems are in place to maintain proper oxygen levels, temperature and humidity and to keep mold, pollens and other particles out of the air.

But smaller offices, where there may be 10 to 20 employees, can’t always afford Class A office space in a new high rise. They are often in older office buildings that don’t have those built-in protections. And small-business owners and managers often don’t even know there’s a potential health problem brewing in the air ducts.

Indoor air quality should be on the minds of all small businesses, especially if they’re in older buildings with less-efficient heating ventilation and air conditioning systems.

The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration, or OSHA, cites a number of health problems related to poor indoor air quality.

“Poor indoor air quality has been tied to symptoms like headaches, fatigue, trouble concentrating, and irritation of the eyes, nose, throat and lungs. Also, some specific diseases have been linked to specific air contaminants or indoor environments, like asthma with damp indoor environments,” OSHA stated on its website.

Even some cancers have been linked to air contaminants, it said.

“Air quality has to do with employee wellness,” said Christa Kraftician, principal with Spillman Farmer Architects in Bethlehem. “With health care costs what they are you have to be thinking ‘how do we keep people healthy?’”

She said air-quality issues ranging from mold in duct work to particulates, volatile organic compound vapors, germs and pollen in the air can lead to serious health problems.

And it’s not just about dusty ducts.

Even high carbon dioxide or low oxygen levels can impact the overall health of the office.

“Productivity is high when oxygen levels are high,” Kraftician said. And conversely, if ventilation is insufficient and enough fresh air isn’t getting into a building, it can cause drowsiness leading to a work “slump” during times of poor air quality.

Spotting the problem

But the signs aren’t always obvious, said Tim Miller, co-owner of Air Care & Restoration Co. of Bethlehem.

“These can often be overlooked for a long period of time,” Miller said.

Often, he said the first indicator of a problem is complaints coming from employees.

Individuals may say their allergies are worse in the office, that they feel drowsy at work, or it could just be that they seem to keep passing the same viruses around.

There are a number of HVAC-related problems that could be causing such issues.

Equipment check

Miller said one of the most common causes is malfunctioning or inadequate equipment.

An aging system may not provide enough heat or cooling, but it may also not be pushing enough fresh air in from the outside to maintain proper oxygen levels inside.

“We exhale carbon dioxide when we breathe. You want to have outside replacement air circulating to counter that,” he said.

Otherwise, over the course of the day, the simple act of employees’ breathing can deplete the oxygen in the office, making everyone gradually sleepier as the afternoon wears on.

Bill Myers, operations manager for Essig Plumbing and Heating in Reading, said all too often the problem in small-business offices is that the HVAC system in place isn’t powerful enough for an office setting.

Because of the size of the office, the HVAC may be scaled down to the size of what would be used in a traditional home setting.

“But businesses likely have more people in a space than in a home so it’s not scaled properly,” Myers said.

Sometimes a system needs to be repaired, upgraded or replaced.

For example, if an HVAC system is not properly functioning it could cause the buildup of excess humidity in air ducts and mold can develop.

“People have gotten pretty sick because of mold problems,” Kraftician noted.

Often the solution is much simpler, Myers said. For a small office, a good duct cleaning and/or adding proper filters to an HVAC system can drastically reduce problems with allergens, viruses, chemical fumes and molds.

Who controls the controls?

Small businesses often rent their office space and need a building’s owner or property manager to address the problem.

What if those in charge of the office’s HVAC system aren’t willing to acknowledge that poor air quality is a problem or pay to remediate it?

Determining if those employee health complaints are directly related to air quality, and getting a building owner to address it, can be tricky.

OSHA does not set indoor air quality standards. It does, however, have standards about ventilation and on some of the air contaminants involved in indoor air-quality problems.

The first step, said Kraftician, is to have professional testing done to see if there is any problem with molds, allergens or particles in the air.

Sam Cohen, a partner with Gross McGinley LLP in Allentown, said proof is an important tool to get a landlord to take action.

If poor air quality is found, and it can be correlated to employee health concerns – with, for example, a doctor’s note – an office tenant would have more footing to demand the landlord take action.

“It can be a gray area,” he said. An office manager should check the language of the lease to see if there are any provisions with regard to quality of life that would require a landlord to act.

Otherwise, the air quality may have to be poor enough to constitute a more serious health and safety issue to force action.

Worth it?

Addressing the cause of such ailments should make a small office function better, said Myers.

Offices that have improved their air quality, in his experience, have found lower absenteeism and employees that just feel generally more alert on the job, which increases productivity. That makes the upgrade a value to the bottom line, as well as to employee wellness.