Poor Cell Phone Service in LEED Buildings?

Where did you hear this from? I've never heard of this or read about any issues on this.

I think the statement that LEED buildings have create poor cell phone reception is not relevant or accurate. There are alot of buildings, that are not LEED that have poor reception. I think the most accurate statement would be buildings with heavy mass (reinforced concrete, masonry) and high performance glazing tend to have weaker cell phone signals. I would like to see a study that actual compares different low e coatings and how it reduces reception before i would consider such statements relevant. As in the article you had linked, it clearly states that the reception was already poor in the area. So i think there are too many variables to just link LEED buildings.

I heard the low e coating may impact the signal strength because the low-e is metal oxide coating. However, I suspect it shouldn't be the solely factor in the problem. Our office is a LEED building and uses low-e glass (air filled) and I never experience any issue with my cell phone in any location or weak cell phone signal. I guess the layout of the interior may be a factor as well, because our building is mostly open space area with low partition between the cubicle.

I believe you may be confusing Low E glazing with RF (radio frequency) shielding film? This type of glazing film is used in high security situations to block cell phone and other communications from entering a secure space. This is an entirely different product than the typical Low E coatings used in the industry.

Building is Europe and particularly in Germany have been using low-e glazing for a long time. I have works and many project and really it's not the glass. Todd is write there is no correlation. The reinforcement in the concrete or radiant ceilings, so lots of metal cause the problem for the most part. This is a common and pretty know problem in Europe, which is why they use systems in the building which boost reception. I was just working on a project over there. During construction with the system not working yet, you had no reception, get close to the window and you are fine. After the system was up and running, you couldn't tell the difference form been outside. So no it's not LEED causing bad reception.

Southwall Technologies has marketed automotive glass with spectrally-selective, low-e coatings for a number of years. This type of glass is found in a number of 'high end' auto brands such as Mercedes-Benz. So you've got auto glass with metal coatings set into a metal enclosure. But I haven't heard of complaints from Mercedes owners of poor mobile phone reception! See http://www.southwall.com/southwall/Home/Automotive/Products/XIRLaminatedGlass.html. Remember, correlation doesn't prove causality! California's energy standards have driven nonresidential buildings in most areas of the state to use spectrally-selective, low-e glass for a number of years. To the best of my knowledge, there has not been a big rise in complaints about mobile phone service. As others here have pointed out, there are many, many reasons you can have poor phone service.

My company conducted several tests within the LEED- Low E Coating environment. We concluded that Low E-Coating is an ongoing issue for cellular users.  Our tests included facilities within police departments, high schools & elementary schools, fire departments, etc... https://www.waveform.com/pages/das-in-leed-buildings-with-low-e-glass