Few, Jessica;
Shipworth, Michelle;
Elwell, Clifford;
(2024)
Ventilation regulations and occupant practices: undetectable pollution and invisible extraction.
Buildings & Cities
, 5
(1)
pp. 16-34.
10.5334/bc.389.
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Abstract
This sociotechnical investigation examines the use of ventilation systems in homes in London, UK. These homes were built with ventilation systems as described by guidance in the UK Building Regulations Approved Document F. These systems are assumed to provide adequate ventilation rates. However, previous measurements in these homes show that ventilation rates are inadequate. Using social practice theory as a framework to analyse the qualitative data, the intended use of the ventilation systems is compared to participants’ actual practices of manipulating the indoor air, revealing discrepancies between the two. Occupants had limited knowledge of indoor pollutants but were highly motivated to control and interact with the smells and air in their homes. They primarily used technologies that were not part of the planned system, because the latter’s functioning was opaque to occupants and not well connected to their other practices. The highlighted discrepancies in four case study homes between planned and actual ventilation system operation help to identify how future systems could be improved to ensure adequate ventilation rates and good indoor air quality in airtight homes.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Ventilation regulations and occupant practices: undetectable pollution and invisible extraction |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.5334/bc.389 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.5334/bc.389 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | © 2024 The Author(s). This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC-BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. See http://creativecommons.org/ licenses/by/4.0/. |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of the Built Environment UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of the Built Environment > Bartlett School Env, Energy and Resources |
| URI: | https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10187362 |
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