The building in question will be a 200,000 square feet warehouse with a 300 square feet office space. Goods and materials stored in the warehouse will not require temperature and/or humidity control. As such, the warehouse area will be designed as naturally conditioned per ASHRAE 55-2004; Section 5.3 during the cooling season. ASHRAE 55-2004; Section 5.3 "Optional Method for Determining Acceptable Thermal Conditions in Naturally Conditioned Spaces" is intended for spaces where the thermal conditions are regulated primarily by the occupants through opening and closing of windows as needed - and meeting the requirements of ASHRAE 62.1-2004, paragraph 5.1, Natural Ventilation. There will be large industrial sized paddle fans to provide air movement within the warehouse area. Heating for the warehouse area will be accommodated with unit heaters or a geothermal system. (The office space will be naturally and mechanically conditioned as needed.) Requirements for this credit state that operable windows may be used in lieu of comfort controls for areas that are 20 feet inside and 10 feet to either side of the operable part of the window. Does this apply to the warehouse space since it is not a regularly occupied space? If operable windows are still required what is the size, location, and spacing requirements of these windows? Please rule if this strategy would be consistent with the intent of this credit.
The CIR is inquiring as to whether warehouse space needs to be included in the calculations for EQc6.2. The project has to meet Prerequisite 1 and the description here does not indicate this has been met. ASHRAE 62.1-2004 defines occupied spaces as follows: "An enclosed space intended for human activities, excluding those spaces intended primarily for other purposes, such as storage rooms and equipment rooms, that are only occupied occasionally and for short periods of time." For the warehouse space, operable windows can serve as the thermal comfort control for the perimeter portions of the room using the natural ventilation requirements. The LEED reference guide credit description and section 5.1 of ASHRAE 62.1-2004 prescribe spacing and sizing requirements for these windows. Interior portions of the space (more than 25\' from an external wall) or perimeter spaces that do not meet the requirements of section 5.1 must have some other method of control over thermal comfort, as described in the credit description. Applicable Internationally.