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Credit language
© Copyright U.S. Green Building Council, Inc. All rights reserved.
Requirements
In mechanically ventilated buildings, each ventilation system that supplies outdoor air shall comply with the following during the performance period:
- Particle filters or air cleaning devices shall clean the outdoor air at any location prior to its introduction to occupied spaces.
- These filters or devices shall meet one of the following criteria for all outside air intakes and inside air recirculation returns:
- Filtration Media is rated a minimum efficiency reporting value (MERV) of 13 in accordance with ASHRAE Standard 52.2 or greater
- Filtration media is Class F7 or higher, as defined by CEN Standard EN 779: 2002, Particulate air filters for general ventilation, Determination of the filtration performance
- Filtration media has a minimum dust spot efficiency of 80% or higher and greater than 98% arrestance on a particle size of 3–10 µg
- Establish and follow a regular schedule for maintenance and replacement of these filtration media according to the manufacturer’s recommended interval.
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Learn more about The Cost of LEED v4 »Frequently asked questions
Is it true that MERV 13 filtration is no longer required for return air circulation?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
Can we earn this credit by adopting a phase-out plan of our old filters and replacing them with MERV 13 filters?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
Can we use pre-filtration in combination with filters that are less than MERV 13 in order to earn the credit? For example if we use carbon pre-filters combined with MERV 11 would that work?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
We are working on a project outside of the U.S. What options do we have for an alternative but equivalent standard to the MERV 13 filter.The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
Addenda
Background: Our project is a high rise building with street level entrances and below grade level building entrances from an inter-modal transportation hall, public transportation systems, and directly from other buildings. This inter-modal transportation hall includes an indoor shopping / amenity arcade, which connects a wide range of retail shops and public transportation (PATH, MTA). This inter-modal transportation network (which is not included in the scope of Tower One) will be a fully enclosed space with conditioned and filtered air, that will also be clean and maintained. The distance traveled from the closest outdoor entry point through the inter-modal transportation hall to the building concourse level entrance is over 500 feet Project Design Approach for Applying EQc5: The entire project design does meet and exceed the air filtration, partitioning, and exhaust requirements of EQc5. The street level entryways designs do have permanent walk off systems that meet the requirements in EQc5. Conclusion and CIR: The concourse entrances will be regular entry points to the building. The concourse entrances are accessed via a conditioned, filtered, clean indoor space and as such it is a significantly cleaner adjacent environment than the street. We are requesting confirmation of our interpretation that the concourse entrances are not "entryways that are directly connected to the out doors" as stated in the EQc5 requirement for the application of walk off systems.
The requirements of EQc5 apply only to entryways that are directly connected to the outdoors. The connection between concourses and interior space does not apply to the requirements of this credit. Applicable Internationally.
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© Copyright U.S. Green Building Council, Inc. All rights reserved.
Requirements
In mechanically ventilated buildings, each ventilation system that supplies outdoor air shall comply with the following during the performance period:
- Particle filters or air cleaning devices shall clean the outdoor air at any location prior to its introduction to occupied spaces.
- These filters or devices shall meet one of the following criteria for all outside air intakes and inside air recirculation returns:
- Filtration Media is rated a minimum efficiency reporting value (MERV) of 13 in accordance with ASHRAE Standard 52.2 or greater
- Filtration media is Class F7 or higher, as defined by CEN Standard EN 779: 2002, Particulate air filters for general ventilation, Determination of the filtration performance
- Filtration media has a minimum dust spot efficiency of 80% or higher and greater than 98% arrestance on a particle size of 3–10 µg
- Establish and follow a regular schedule for maintenance and replacement of these filtration media according to the manufacturer’s recommended interval.
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- Examples of actual submissions from certified LEED projects.
Is it true that MERV 13 filtration is no longer required for return air circulation?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
Can we earn this credit by adopting a phase-out plan of our old filters and replacing them with MERV 13 filters?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
Can we use pre-filtration in combination with filters that are less than MERV 13 in order to earn the credit? For example if we use carbon pre-filters combined with MERV 11 would that work?The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
We are working on a project outside of the U.S. What options do we have for an alternative but equivalent standard to the MERV 13 filter.The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial » (If you're already a premium member, log in here.) |
Background: Our project is a high rise building with street level entrances and below grade level building entrances from an inter-modal transportation hall, public transportation systems, and directly from other buildings. This inter-modal transportation hall includes an indoor shopping / amenity arcade, which connects a wide range of retail shops and public transportation (PATH, MTA). This inter-modal transportation network (which is not included in the scope of Tower One) will be a fully enclosed space with conditioned and filtered air, that will also be clean and maintained. The distance traveled from the closest outdoor entry point through the inter-modal transportation hall to the building concourse level entrance is over 500 feet Project Design Approach for Applying EQc5: The entire project design does meet and exceed the air filtration, partitioning, and exhaust requirements of EQc5. The street level entryways designs do have permanent walk off systems that meet the requirements in EQc5. Conclusion and CIR: The concourse entrances will be regular entry points to the building. The concourse entrances are accessed via a conditioned, filtered, clean indoor space and as such it is a significantly cleaner adjacent environment than the street. We are requesting confirmation of our interpretation that the concourse entrances are not "entryways that are directly connected to the out doors" as stated in the EQc5 requirement for the application of walk off systems.
The requirements of EQc5 apply only to entryways that are directly connected to the outdoors. The connection between concourses and interior space does not apply to the requirements of this credit. Applicable Internationally.