How In-Duct Air Quality Monitoring Builds Accountability Between Landlords and Tenants

In-duct air quality monitoring, where sensors are placed in the ductwork of a building’s HVAC system, provides a different set of data than standard wall-mounted air quality monitors, which measure air quality in a given room or space. Together, these datasets track how air quality changes as air moves throughout the built environment, providing a complete picture of a building’s IAQ.

If you aren’t familiar with how in-duct monitoring works, read this article for a full overview of in-duct air quality monitoring and why you should consider adding these sensors to your deployment. For the best insights into your building’s performance, your deployment should include all three types of commercial air quality monitors: indoor, outdoor, and in-duct sensors.

In short, in-duct monitors are specialized sensors that are placed in three locations in the ductwork:

• In the air intake, to measure the outdoor air quality

• In the supply duct, to measure the air that is being delivered to each space

• In the return duct, to measure the air after it has circulated through the space

These three readings have a wide range of applications for building management and indoor environmental optimization, but today we’ll be focusing on one application that has already gained significant traction: creating IAQ accountability between landlords and tenants.

Why IAQ Can Be a Point of Tension Between Landlords and Tenants

Both landlords and tenants impact a building’s air quality. On the one hand, landlords are responsible for managing the HVAC system, the building management system (BMS), and all of the mechanical systems that optimize air quality inside the building.

Tenants, on the other hand, have control over the IAQ in their rented space, whether it’s a single suite or multiple floors of the building. They can open and close windows, cook, clean, add new materials, and even renovate their space in some cases.

When it comes to accountability for air quality, these two environments (the base building owned by landlords and the rented space operated by tenants) are mutually exclusive. Landlords can’t install IAQ monitors in the rented space, while tenants can’t put sensors in the ductwork or common areas.

While this exclusivity is a natural part of any commercial lease, the lines can get blurred when air quality comes into question. When someone uncovers an IAQ issue, it can be difficult to pinpoint the exact cause, which might cause friction in the landlord-tenant relationship.

This is where in-duct air quality monitoring can be extremely useful. By measuring the air that enters and leaves each space, in-duct sensors can help figure out where the systems have gone wrong and quickly identify the best solution, bringing landlords and tenants together to re-establish a healthy indoor environment.

How In-Duct Air Quality Monitoring Benefits Landlords

Landlords may not be able to directly install IAQ sensors in their tenants’ spaces, but an easy workaround is to install in-duct sensors in both the supply and return ducts. Supply duct monitors help landlords understand the quality of air they’re delivering to the tenant’s space, while return duct monitors show how the air quality has changed since being in the space.

Installing both types of in-duct monitors can help landlords:

1. Prove they’re delivering optimal indoor air to tenants

When landlords arm themselves with IAQ data from the supply duct, they can immediately recognize and address any air quality changes or risks, and sometimes even refute accusations of poor air quality from tenants. Better yet, landlords can proactively share this data on a regular basis to prove that they’re delivering healthy air to the space and continue building trust with tenants.

2. Hold tenants accountable for how they impact the building’s IAQ

By comparing IAQ readings from the supply and return ducts, landlords can gauge how tenants’ activity is impacting the building’s overall air quality. If supply air is optimal but return air has high pollutant concentrations, then the landlord can determine that the source of the problem is the tenant's activity, not the building itself.

While some activities, like an overcrowded conference room that causes a CO2 spike, only affect the individual tenant’s space, other activities, like construction, can negatively impact air quality throughout the entire building (especially if several floors share the same air handling unit). If landlords pick up on a major air quality issue like this, they can go directly to the tenant and work out a solution (like sealing the air ducts) to protect everyone else in the building from the health impacts of poor air quality.

3. Align rent prices with the value of having a healthy building

As more buildings pursue healthy building certifications, landlords are starting to raise their rent prices to reflect the level of investment required to achieve a healthy indoor environment. This is a common trend we see in WELL-certified buildings, especially those that achieve gold or platinum status.

Many tenants of WELL-certified buildings understand the value of a healthy indoor environment and are willing to invest in these spaces. In return, more landlords are proactively sharing IAQ data to demonstrate that they’re upholding their commitment. As in-duct monitoring becomes more common, supply duct readings will play a key role in these data-sharing agreements by providing a direct measure of the air the landlord is delivering.

How In-Duct Air Quality Monitoring Benefits Tenants

While in-duct monitoring data delivers a wide range of benefits to landlords, this data also provides significant value to tenants. While tenants themselves cannot install monitors in ducts, many have started writing in-duct monitoring into their leases via service-level agreements (SLAs). 

An SLA outlines a tenant’s requirements for air quality from the landlord, with specific performance-driven metrics and corrective actions the landlord must take if air quality readings are poor. Instead of generic language like “sufficient ventilation” or “adequate air quality,” tenants can add SLAs to their leases that outline specific metrics, such as:

• “Deliver ___ cubic feet per minute of fresh air”

• “Maintain CO2 levels of ___ ppm or less”

• “Achieve a PM2.5 reduction of __% from outdoor air”

Using data from the supply duct, tenants can hold landlords accountable for meeting these thresholds. At the same time, landlords can include their own lease terms to make sure tenants uphold certain IAQ standards to ensure their activity doesn’t impact air quality for other tenants (who may also have their own SLAs for air quality).

Want to Know More About How In-Duct IAQ Monitoring Can Benefit Your Building or Space?

Whether you’re a landlord or a tenant, installing in-duct sensors can help you create accountability, increase transparency, and, ultimately, create a healthier indoor environment for your occupants. Connect with a member of the Kaiterra team today for more information!