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LEED v4
Existing Schools
Indoor Environmental Quality

Occupant comfort survey

LEED CREDIT

Schools-EBOM-v4 EQc10: Occupant comfort survey 1 point

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View the LEED v4.1 version of this credit »

SPECIAL REPORT

LEEDuser expert

Kelly Mehring

LEED AP O+M, MS

Rivion, LLC
Manager of Existing Building Certifications

SPECIAL REPORT

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Credit language

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© Copyright U.S. Green Building Council, Inc. All rights reserved.

Requirements

Establishment

None

Performance

Administer at least one occupant comfort survey to collect anonymous responses regarding at least the following:
  • acoustics;
  • building cleanliness;
  • indoor air quality;
  • lighting;
  • thermal comfort; and
    • The responses must be collected from a representative sample of building occupants making up at least 30% of the total occupants. Document survey results. Develop and implement a corrective action plan to address comfort issues if the results indicate that more than 20% of occupants are dissatisfied. Perform at least one survey and implement corrective actions. At a minimum, perform one new survey at least once every 2 years.
See all forum discussions about this credit »

What does it cost?

Cost estimates for this credit

On each BD+C v4 credit, LEEDuser offers the wisdom of a team of architects, engineers, cost estimators, and LEED experts with hundreds of LEED projects between then. They analyzed the sustainable design strategies associated with each LEED credit, but also to assign actual costs to those strategies.

Our tab contains overall cost guidance, notes on what “soft costs” to expect, and a strategy-by-strategy breakdown of what to consider and what it might cost, in percentage premiums, actual costs, or both.

This information is also available in a full PDF download in The Cost of LEED v4 report.

Learn more about The Cost of LEED v4 »

Frequently asked questions

My project is a hotel/library/recreation center with patrons that stay for more than ten hours each week. Do I need to survey these guests?

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Can we collect anonymous survey responses but still incentivize individuals to respond by offering a prize?

The answer to this question is available to LEEDuser premium members. Start a free trial »

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What happens if there are many areas of occupant dissatisfaction that require corrective action? We might not have the time to address everything before we have to submit our LEED application. 

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.)

What if the corrective action component of the credit is too costly for us? We don’t want to attempt this credit and then find out we’re not able to earn it because corrective action is too expensive. 

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.)

See all forum discussions about this credit »

Addenda

4/14/2017Updated: 4/19/2017
Reference Guide Correction
Description of change:
Revise campus language:
Group Approach
Submit separate documentation for each building.

Campus Approach
Ineligible. Each LEED project may pursue the credit individually.
Campus Applicable
No
Internationally Applicable:
No
See all forum discussions about this credit »

Documentation toolkit

The motherlode of cheat sheets

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LEEDuser expert

Kelly Mehring

LEED AP O+M, MS

Rivion, LLC
Manager of Existing Building Certifications

Get the inside scoop

Our editors have written a detailed analysis of nearly every LEED credit, and LEEDuser premium members get full access. We’ll tell you whether the credit is easy to accomplish or better left alone, and we provide insider tips on how to document it successfully.

USGBC logo

© Copyright U.S. Green Building Council, Inc. All rights reserved.

Requirements

Establishment

None

Performance

Administer at least one occupant comfort survey to collect anonymous responses regarding at least the following:
  • acoustics;
  • building cleanliness;
  • indoor air quality;
  • lighting;
  • thermal comfort; and
    • The responses must be collected from a representative sample of building occupants making up at least 30% of the total occupants. Document survey results. Develop and implement a corrective action plan to address comfort issues if the results indicate that more than 20% of occupants are dissatisfied. Perform at least one survey and implement corrective actions. At a minimum, perform one new survey at least once every 2 years.

In the end, LEED is all about documentation. LEEDuser’s Documentation Toolkit, for premium members only, saves you time and helps you avoid mistakes with:

  • Calculators to help assess credit compliance.
  • Tracking spreadsheets for materials purchases.
  • Spreadsheets and forms to give to subs and other team members.
  • Guidance documents on arcane LEED issues.
  • Sample templates to help guide your narratives and LEED Online submissions.
  • Examples of actual submissions from certified LEED projects.

My project is a hotel/library/recreation center with patrons that stay for more than ten hours each week. Do I need to survey these guests?

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 collect anonymous survey responses but still incentivize individuals to respond by offering a prize?

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.)

What happens if there are many areas of occupant dissatisfaction that require corrective action? We might not have the time to address everything before we have to submit our LEED application. 

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.)

What if the corrective action component of the credit is too costly for us? We don’t want to attempt this credit and then find out we’re not able to earn it because corrective action is too expensive. 

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.)

4/14/2017Updated: 4/19/2017
Reference Guide Correction
Description of change:
Revise campus language:
Group Approach
Submit separate documentation for each building.

Campus Approach
Ineligible. Each LEED project may pursue the credit individually.
Campus Applicable
No
Internationally Applicable:
No

LEEDuser expert

Kelly Mehring

LEED AP O+M, MS

Rivion, LLC
Manager of Existing Building Certifications

See all LEEDuser forum discussions about this credit » Subscribe to new discussions about Schools-EBOM-v4 EQc10 View the LEED v4.1 version of this credit