![]() “It’s getting passed on to us,” Bocra said, “so we’re figuring out how to prepare the industry for that.” It’s not a New York City program – national regulations have been adopted by the state – but the Department of Buildings is working through the implications. “And now you really need to treat that air.”īocra said the new regulations also require the ventilation system to “capture the energy,” using the already warmed or cooled air from the residence to warm or cool the fresh air coming in, instead of exhausting the air directly.īocra said mandatory ventilation systems are likely to raise some home prices, but that it pays off through energy savings over time. ![]() “So you really need to bring fresh air in to ventilate the place,” Bocra said. And that’s a big change for the market,” said Gina Bocra, chief sustainability officer at the New York City Department of Buildings, who also sat on the panel.īocra said that energy efficiency codes have led real estate developers to “tighten” buildings, so less air leaks in and out through walls and windows. “You won’t be able to just rely on opening and closing windows for your ventilation air anymore, which is how it’s been done traditionally. New York City is imposing new building regulations starting next year, where all residences, even single-family homes, will have to have ventilation systems. This is City & State, so there’s a government connection. ![]() Put simply: “If you’re putting unconditioned air in the space, you’re defeating everything that we’re working hard to do!” Lockwood said.īut this isn’t just a public service announcement about why you shouldn’t open your office windows. “The minute you change the balance by bringing fresh air into an occupied space without treating it, it automatically throws off that balance.” “A commercial building is designed to ventilate, heat and air condition a space to make people comfortable,” said Nanette Lockwood, global director of policy and advocacy for Ingersoll Rand, a conglomerate that counts the air conditioning manufacturer Trane among its assets. Luckily, the experts said they’re quite important to energy efficiency. But since I’m just a reporter and not an engineer, the most creative infrastructure I could think of was windows. I raised the question at City & State’s Sustainable New York Summit on Thursday, where I moderated a panel called Creative Infrastructure for a Sustainable City. The answer from a couple of experts: Please don’t! The question invariably comes up: “Can’t we just open a window?” It’s a beautiful day outside, and you’re toiling away at your desk inside a freezing cold Manhattan high-rise.
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