Poor air conditioning and thermal discomfort, how to solve it?

In recent years, the concept of thermal discomfort has become popular, although it is not yet accepted by the Royal Spanish Academy, but has been coined by the Government. As explained by the National Institute of Safety and Hygiene at Work (INSHT), this problem of lack of comfort occurs when a person is exposed to very high or very low temperatures at work. What is the cause? A poor air conditioning or inadequate ventilation. And the problems it can cause are severe enough to take this phenomenon into account.

Although thermal discomfort could originate at home, we usually refer to it in work environments, though the concept has been expanded to domestic work. This lack of comfort due to erroneous temperatures from a poor air conditioning can lead to negative situations, always due to an excess of cold or heat indoors:

• Tiredness and drowsiness in case of excess heat.
• Disorientation if temperatures are too high.
• A certain state of unease with thermometers marked at very high or too low values.
• Poor performance of our tasks and anxiety if temperatures drop too low.

This problem is due to a poor air conditioning, which is not only caused by a lack of systems that temper the air indoors, but can also arise from excessive use of air conditioning or heating systems. We would find the following situations of thermal discomfort:

1. In summer, when indoor temperatures are too high and pose an inconvenience.
2. In winter, when there are no solutions against the cold and very low temperatures are present at work.
3. In summer, if inside an office the air conditioning system causes temperatures to drop too much.
4. In winter, if the heating forces us to wear short sleeves to avoid problems from excess heat.

The first two cases often occur in production or technical work environments. Some can take place in industrial warehouses or production centers, or even in kitchens. The other two situations, when experiencing heat in winter and cold in summer, usually have their origins in an abuse of air conditioning in offices.

According to INSHT, heat is "a danger to health because our body, to function normally, needs to maintain a constant temperature inside, around 37 °C". If this value is exceeded, health problems arise. Likewise, cold depends on temperature and air velocity, with thermal discomfort due to poor air conditioning being a serious problem if our body drops below 33 °C, which would produce hypothermia.

Problems in offices due to thermal discomfort caused by poor air conditioning

In production work environments, special care must be taken to avoid problems of hyperthermia or hypothermia, ensuring that despite adverse weather conditions, workers are in a state of thermal comfort.

In the case of offices, the problem is continuous abuses regarding air conditioning systems. The most common examples are workplaces where it is very hot in winter and in summer we need to dress warmly due to air conditioning.

According to the Ministry of Labor, the temperatures we should have indoors are between 23°C and 26 °C in summer, and between 20°C and 24 °C in winter. This would also favor energy consumption, and utility bills would not skyrocket.

One of the most common problems added to poor air conditioning is the lack of a mechanical ventilation system that renews the air that needs to be extracted from closed rooms.

To solve the problems of thermal discomfort, one of the best options is to install a double-flow mechanical ventilation system. In this case, two main benefits can be achieved:

1. You will breathe clean air by preventing stale air from forming in each of the rooms, which also helps to increase comfort indoors. The air will be filtered before entering from outside.
2. Energy efficiency is guaranteed by being able to temper the air that enters from outside, both in winter and in summer. Thus, it is possible to improve indoor temperatures with a heat recovery unit, bypassing the use of traditional air conditioning systems.

Double-flow ventilation systems are capable of solving poor air conditioning and thermal discomfort in work environments, in addition to providing considerable savings in electricity and other utilities. This is why they are one of the best solutions for improving the professional environment.