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2005
Conference Paper
Titel
People - rooms - atmosphere?
Abstract
It is quite understandable that there are growing wishes and requirements for a comfortable and healthy indoor environment. The number of those, who are unsatisfied with the climate conditions of their indoor environment, is at least 5 - 15 %. Small changes in temperature will even cause an increase in this number. Heating and ventilation behaviour is playing a significant role besides moisture generation. On the other hand living and consumption habits as well as building materials for external and internal application influence the quality of indoor air. Yet people are nowadays more sensitized concerning possible damaging influences on their living environment caused by any kind of air pollutants. Such problems are often paraphrased by notions like Sick-Building- Syndrome (SBS) or Building Related-Illness (BRI). Analyses show that there is a significant interdependence between the application of certain building materials and the occurrence of certain health problems. With regard to air quality and comfort, odours have a special physical importance. Odours and odorous substances are ubiquitous in indoor air. The question, whether the wish for a comfortable living environment is always inevitably connected to a risk for the building fabric and the residents, may be denied, but any risk cannot be entirely ruled out. The risk for the residents can be minimized by adapting heating and ventilation behaviour as well as living habits to the given building structural facts besides a careful selection of the respective building materials.