A Comprehensive Guide on TVOC and Its Impact in Air Quality
If you’re like most people, you spend the majority of your time inside. On average, people spend 90% of their time in indoor spaces be it home, school, work, or running errands. Although being outside in nature is great for your mental health, there’s only so much time you can spend fending off wind, bugs, and stifling heat. To make indoor settings pleasant for everyone, you as a building owner need to pay attention to total volatile organic compounds (TVOC) and air quality.
What Are TVOCs?
If you’ve been in the building game for a while, you probably know about volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which refers to carbon-based chemicals that easily evaporate at room temperature. When you bring items that release VOCs into your home or office building, these chemicals release particulate matter into the air, which is also called “off-gassing.” These chemicals reduce indoor air quality (IAQ).
TVOC refers to the sum of VOCs in your building. As low-volume VOCs are released into the air from various sources, they mix to form TVOCs. Using TVOCs to measure air quality is easier than trying to measure each different type of VOC in the air. It’s important to keep your TVOC levels under control so your occupants can stay healthy.
How do TVOCs Impact Air Quality?
Most of the time, you can keep your TVOC levels in check with a good filtration system. However, TVOCs and other indoor air pollutants can build up. A strong smell is one way to know you’re being exposed to TVOCs. Consider the smell of a freshly painted room that hasn’t been aired out, or how your living room smells when you bring home a new couch.
TVOCs don’t always concentrate at high enough levels to produce a telltale smell, though. Indoor air quality monitoring is your best bet for keeping TVOCs at bay. Being exposed to these compounds over time can cause health problems. High TVOC levels can also cause paint, adhesives, and other building materials to deteriorate. They can also drain your HVAC system since you need more energy to ventilate a building with poor air quality.
Common Sources of TVOC
If you’ve noticed that TVOC levels in your home are high, you may be looking for the culprit. Common sources of TVOC in everyday products include:
Building materials: plywood, other composite wood products, furniture, paint, plastic materials, and flooring often release VOCs into the air. Some pressed woods release formaldehyde and other VOCs. Paints, adhesives, and some aerosols produce methylene chloride.
Household products: Cleaning products, air fresheners, paint thinner, and bug repellents can release chemicals such as benzene and glycol ethers.
Personal Care Items: Cosmetics, hair sprays, aerosol sprays, nail polish, and other personal care items release chemicals such as isopropyl alcohol and toluene.
Mold and Mildew: Mold and mildew produce aldehydes, alcohols, ketones, and hydrocarbons as byproducts of their metabolism.
What TVOC Levels are Safe?
Your home or office building will likely have some TVOCs in the air on occasion. As long as the level is below 0.5 mg/cubic meters, you should be fine. It’s normal to see TVOC levels rise after you’ve finished cleaning, or if someone in your house is painting their nails or working on a hobby, such as building models. Keep TVOCs and other causes of low IAQ under control during these activities by opening a window or turning on your fan to circulate the air.
One drawback to TVOC sensors is that they don’t measure individual compounds. Use a sensor that also measures carbon dioxide, ozone, and mold for a better idea of your indoor air quality.
Health Effects of High TVOC Levels
Short and long-term exposure to dangerous VOC levels comes with potential health risks. If you’re around TVOCs for short periods, such as when you’ve unwrapped your new mattress and it’s off-gassing, you’ll likely recover. Long-term exposure is more dangerous. TVOCs impact your health by causing:
Eye, Nose, and Throat Irritation: Inhaling small particulates and chemicals in the air irritates mucous membranes in your eyes, nose, and throat, which causes the signature burning and irritation you experience in a freshly painted room, for example.
Headaches and Nausea: VOCs can also cause inflammation and other natural reactions in your body that trigger headaches and make you feel nauseated.
Fatigue and Dizziness: Some VOCs impact your nervous system, which can make you feel dizzy or fatigued.
Long-Term Health Effects: Spending a long time around TVOCs can damage your liver, kidneys, and your central nervous system. It can also potentially cause cancer.
How to Reduce TVOC Levels
You want to be able to spend time in your home or at your office without making yourself sick. Use these strategies to manage TVOC levels:
Improving Ventilation: Good ventilation helps clean particulates from the air and keeps them from building up to unsafe levels. Open windows, use fans, and clean your HVAC system regularly.
Choosing Low-VOC Products: Look for paint, furnishings, cleaning products and other everyday items formulated to lower TVOC levels. Look for “low-VOC” or “No VOC” labels when shopping.
Regular Cleaning and Maintenance: It’s tempting to skip regular HVAC cleanings and filter changes. Staying on schedule keeps your system running well for longer, which reduces TVOC levels in your home or other building.
The Importance of Using TVOC Air Quality Monitors
If the answer to “What is TVOC in air quality?” sends you into hiding, consider installing TVOC air quality monitors. Monitoring and reducing TVOC levels improves your air quality and protects your health. It also turns your home or office into a more pleasant atmosphere, which is conducive to productivity or lounging. TVOC air quality monitors help you learn when levels are reaching unsafe levels so you can take action.
Improve Your Indoor Air Quality with Attune’s Solutions
Attune’s indoor air quality solution offers a smart solution to tracking and managing TVOC levels. Once you’ve installed our IoT sensors, monitor real-time data with your phone or computer. Our dashboards are easy to read so you can stay on top of your indoor quality. You will also get an alert if TVOC levels reach unsafe levels, so you know you’re always avoiding TVOCs.
Schedule a demo today to learn how Attune’s IAQ solution works to help you maximize your indoor air quality.
