Here's something /never/ considered by politicians nor health care personnel:
AC-systems of public buildings, offices and apartment-blocks.
Having worked as a cleaner, I can testify to the fact that it is normal to not clean those or swap any filters unless the system breaks down or people start complaining about bad smells, mould et c.
Finding foot-thick layers of dust with things growing in and on the ventilation-system is standard, especially for public/municipal buildings such as hospitals or administrative offices.
Schools and kindergartens specifically are notorious offenders when it comes to dust, mould, moss, fungi and other crap in the ventilations systems.
Reason for this? People thinking AC is better than opening a window (granted, huge complexes can't do that due to sheer size - maybe don't build that way, hm?) and the time/cost associated with cleaning AC and ventilation systems.
And don't get me started on the coffee-vending machines...
Oh, yes, HEPA filters. I remember them well--there was a recent study from Germany (eugyppius discussed it, if memory serves), showing that those sitting in rooms with HEPA filters had higher levels of illness compared to others in rooms without such filters.
Your point about windows that cannot be opened and the lack of maintenance of HEPA/AC units is well taken; I'd add problems with central heating units here.
When I was in NYC back in autumn 2018, I once ventured downtown to visit a colleague at NYU; his office was totally over-heated, but at least he was able to open the windows. Guess what, smiling, he told me that the heating was what's called 'central heating' (i.e., 'residual' heat from other industrial processes pumped through the city), hence he may as well let out 'excess heat' by opening the window. He added: 'that's just like in the former Soviet bloc', grinning.
As regards coffee-vending machines: he who uses them is the fool, although exposure to these pathogens might actually be beneficial…
To pile on: when checking air-flow, that's all you check - the amount of air passing through the system at the points of measuring, to ensure the flow is in line with regulations.
What a janitor or cleaner may be instructed to do before inspection is to open all filters, to ensure flow and then replace the filters after the check.
Furthermore, when cleaning/replacing filters et c in large complexes you rarely do the entire building in one go. Instead, it's done in small sections over several years, to lower cost per fiscal year.
Worst case I've seen is in Malmö, the old Teacher's College-building complex now instead being used as an elementary and secondary school. Turned out there was mold growing in the AC system in several spots. You could feel it without needing equipment in some halls and classrooms - eyes stinging, throat burning and so on, and when there's that much spores in the air, well it's dangerous.
The system not only needed cleaning, it needed replacing. For which there was no budget. What did they do? They asked to be excused from the rules and regulations re: public buildings and air quality so they wouldn't be forced to shut down and house students and faculty in barracks. Since it's a state function asking another state function, it was granted. They then proposed to clean out and replace one pavillion at a time, despite the entire system being interconnected.
Needless to say, the people making the decisions weren't AC-technicians; they were college admin-staff.
(The sh*t I caught for informing the Students' Union about this at the time, oh dear.)
Here's something /never/ considered by politicians nor health care personnel:
AC-systems of public buildings, offices and apartment-blocks.
Having worked as a cleaner, I can testify to the fact that it is normal to not clean those or swap any filters unless the system breaks down or people start complaining about bad smells, mould et c.
Finding foot-thick layers of dust with things growing in and on the ventilation-system is standard, especially for public/municipal buildings such as hospitals or administrative offices.
Schools and kindergartens specifically are notorious offenders when it comes to dust, mould, moss, fungi and other crap in the ventilations systems.
Reason for this? People thinking AC is better than opening a window (granted, huge complexes can't do that due to sheer size - maybe don't build that way, hm?) and the time/cost associated with cleaning AC and ventilation systems.
And don't get me started on the coffee-vending machines...
Oh, yes, HEPA filters. I remember them well--there was a recent study from Germany (eugyppius discussed it, if memory serves), showing that those sitting in rooms with HEPA filters had higher levels of illness compared to others in rooms without such filters.
Your point about windows that cannot be opened and the lack of maintenance of HEPA/AC units is well taken; I'd add problems with central heating units here.
When I was in NYC back in autumn 2018, I once ventured downtown to visit a colleague at NYU; his office was totally over-heated, but at least he was able to open the windows. Guess what, smiling, he told me that the heating was what's called 'central heating' (i.e., 'residual' heat from other industrial processes pumped through the city), hence he may as well let out 'excess heat' by opening the window. He added: 'that's just like in the former Soviet bloc', grinning.
As regards coffee-vending machines: he who uses them is the fool, although exposure to these pathogens might actually be beneficial…
To pile on: when checking air-flow, that's all you check - the amount of air passing through the system at the points of measuring, to ensure the flow is in line with regulations.
What a janitor or cleaner may be instructed to do before inspection is to open all filters, to ensure flow and then replace the filters after the check.
Furthermore, when cleaning/replacing filters et c in large complexes you rarely do the entire building in one go. Instead, it's done in small sections over several years, to lower cost per fiscal year.
Worst case I've seen is in Malmö, the old Teacher's College-building complex now instead being used as an elementary and secondary school. Turned out there was mold growing in the AC system in several spots. You could feel it without needing equipment in some halls and classrooms - eyes stinging, throat burning and so on, and when there's that much spores in the air, well it's dangerous.
The system not only needed cleaning, it needed replacing. For which there was no budget. What did they do? They asked to be excused from the rules and regulations re: public buildings and air quality so they wouldn't be forced to shut down and house students and faculty in barracks. Since it's a state function asking another state function, it was granted. They then proposed to clean out and replace one pavillion at a time, despite the entire system being interconnected.
Needless to say, the people making the decisions weren't AC-technicians; they were college admin-staff.
(The sh*t I caught for informing the Students' Union about this at the time, oh dear.)