This white paper, produced by Carrier, provides a practical guide to assessing and improving indoor air quality (IAQ) in K–12 school buildings. It covers the documented benefits of better IAQ — including improved student cognitive performance, reduced absenteeism, and lower transmission of airborne illnesses — and walks through a systematic process for evaluating current conditions and planning cost-effective upgrades. It frames IAQ improvement as multilayered strategy that includes increased outdoor air intake, higher-efficiency filtration, and supplemental air cleaning devices such as portable HEPA units, noting both benefits and caveats of each element.
The paper covers how to assess current system performance through commissioning, direct airflow measurement, and sensor-based monitoring of pollutants including PM2.5, CO2, VOCs, and formaldehyde. It addresses the tradeoffs between retrofitting and replacing existing HVAC components, the important role of building automation systems (BAS) in enabling real-time monitoring and energy optimization, and common challenges that arise when trying to improve IAQ in older buildings. A brief section on funding encourages teams to look across governmental and non-governmental sources and to build a clear financial case — including projected energy and maintenance savings — when seeking approvals.