Air changes per hour

Air changes per hour, abbreviated ACPH or ACH, or air change rate is a measure of the air
volume added to or removed from a space (normally a room or house) divided by the volume of the
space.[1] If the air in the space is either uniform or perfectly mixed, air changes per hour is a measure
of how many times the air within a defined space is replaced.
In many air distribution arrangements, air is neither uniform nor perfectly mixed. The actual
percentage of an enclosure's air which is exchanged in a period depends on the airflow efficiency of
the enclosure and the methods used to ventilate it. The actual amount of air changed in a well mixed
ventilation scenario will be 63.2% after 1 hour and 1 ACH.[2] In order to achieve equilibrium pressure,
the amount of air leaving the space and entering the space must be the same.
Where:

 ACPH = number of air changes per hour; higher values correspond to better ventilation
 Q = Volumetric flow rate of air in cubic feet per minute (cfm), if using Imperial units, or cubic
meters per minute if using SI
 Vol = Space volume L × W × H, in cubic feet if using Imperial units, or cubic meters if using SI
Ventilation rates are often expressed as a volume rate per person (CFM per person, L/s per person).
The conversion between air changes per hour and ventilation rate per person is as follows:

Where:

 Rp = ventilation rate per person (CFM per person, L/s per person)
 ACPH = Air changes per hour
 D = Occupant density (square feet per occupant, square meters per occupant)
 h = Ceiling height (ft, meters)

Contents

 1Air change rate

 2Measure of Airtightness
 3Effects of ACH due to forced ventilation in a dwelling
 4References

Air change rate

Air change rates are often used as rules of thumb in ventilation design. However, they are seldom
used as the actual basis of design or calculation. For example, laboratory ventilation standards
indicate recommended ranges for air change rates,[3] as a guideline for the actual design. Residential
ventilation rates are calculated based on area of the residence and number of occupants.[1] Non-
residential ventilation rates are based on floor area and number of occupants, or a calculated dilution
of known contaminants.[4] Hospital design standards use air changes per hour,[5] although this has
been criticized.[6]
Basement Parking 15–30

Residential Basement 3–4

Bedroom 5-6

Residential Bathroom 6-7

Residential Living Rooms 6-8

Residential Kitchen 7-8

Residential Laundry 8-9

Business Offices 6-8

Business Lunch Break Rooms 7-8

Business Conference Rooms 8-12

Business Copy Rooms 10-12

Computer Rooms 10-14

Restaurant Dining Area 8-10

Restaurant Food Staging Area 10-12

Restaurant Bar 15-20

 Public Hallway 6-8

Public Retail Store 6-10

Public Foyer 8-10

Church 8-12

Public Auditorium 12-14

Commercial kitchens & Restrooms 15–30

Smoking rooms 15-20

Laboratories 6–12[3]

Classrooms 3–4

Warehousing 3-10

Measure of Airtightness
Many if not most uses of ACH are actually referring to results of a standard blower door test in which
50 pascals of pressure are applied (ACH50), rather than the volume of air changed under normal
conditions. The Passive House standard requires airtightness so that there will be less than 0.6 ACH
with a pressure difference between inside and outside of 50 Pa.[7]

Effects of ACH due to forced ventilation in a dwelling

Forced ventilation to increase ACH becomes a necessity to maintain acceptable air quality as
occupants become reluctant to open windows due to behavioural changes such as keeping windows
closed for security.[8]
Air changes are often cited as a means of preventing condensation in houses with forced ventilation
systems often rated from 3 - 5 ACH though without referencing the size of the house. However,
where ACH is already greater than 0.75 a forced ventilation system is unlikely to be of use at
controlling condensation and instead insulation or heating are better remedies.[8] Seven out of eight
houses studied in NZ in 2010 had an ACH (corrected for ventilation factors) of 0.75 or greater.[8] The
presence of forced ventilation systems has been shown in some cases to actually increase the
humidity rather than lower it.[8] By displacing air inside a dwelling with infiltrated air (air brought in
from outside the dwelling), positive pressure ventilation systems can increase heating (in winter) or
cooling (in summer) requirements in a house.[8][9] For example, to maintain a 15 °C temperature in a
certain dwelling about 3.0 kW of heating are required at 0 ACH (no heat loss due to warmed air
leaving the dwelling, instead heat is lost due to conduction or radiation), 3.8 kW at 1 ACH and
4.5 kW are required at 2 ACH.[8] The use of roof space for heating or cooling was seen as ineffectual
with the maximum heating benefits occurring in winter in more southerly regions (being close to the
South Pole in these southern hemisphere reports) but being equivalent only to about 0.5 kW or the
heating provided by about five 100 W incandescent light bulbs; cooling effects in summer were
similarly small and were more pronounced for more northerly homes (being closer to the equator); in
all cases the values assumed that the ventilation system automatically disengaged when the
infiltrating air was warmer or cooler (as appropriate) than the air already in the dwelling as it would
otherwise exacerbate the undesirable conditions in the house.[9]