Many conversations with different State Health Departments and Building Code Officials. There has been a preponderance of misinterpretation on all our parts, as to IF a room air filter, when used in a hospital room, is able to be used at all, most of the codes state that :
"recirculation of air by means of room units is not allowed"
You must be aware that this is a normal problem with any written code. All of the ASHRAE codes as well as States are written this way. NQ is not, this room unit ! !
The ASHRAE Council met last year in Washington DC., and has recently changed this reference to only mean for the recirculation of air in a room if the room unit is used to heat or cool the space(s). The final published document is expected to be out shortly. This does not help you at this point, but I can offer you the information we submitted to other officials.
I was involved with one of our local officials that was on the ASHRAE rewrite council and it was obvious to both of us, that when the code talks about the "Room Unit", it means, a unit that is used to heat or cool the space. To further this point, the table that this is all listed in, is part of a Section in the Guidelines titled Air Conditioning, Heating, and Ventilation ! The Nature’s Quarters unit is not doing any part of the above functions, because the definition of ventilation, in the ASHRAE code is: "the process of supplying air to or removing air from a space" ! Any self contained or free standing air filters which are not heating or cooling, should not be judged on this code or table. NQ is not, this room unit !
The last part to this scenario is the fact that most medical equipment has cooling fans inside them, like a computer chip. Are these types of medical equipment not allowed to be used in a room because they indeed also "recirculate room air" . . . . I think not ! ! !
