Sensors for Building Use Evaluations

HOBO is pretty much the solution you are looking for.  https://www.onsetcomp.com/ 

I would also consider Awair or SenseEdge Adam McMillen, PE, CPHC, LEED AP BD+C Director of Sustainability [IMEG Corp.] IMEG Corp. 1100 Warrenville Road | Suite 400W | Naperville, IL 60563 (630) 527-2320 | phone (312) 852-1360 | mobile (630) 527-2321 | fax Adam.M.McMillen@imegcorp.com website | my linkedin | vCard | map | regional news [Twitter][Facebook][LinkedIn] Learn more about us and the IMEG story! This email may contain confidential and/or private information. If you received this email in error please delete and notify sender.

I personally use Awair and think it's awesome, but it does need to be plugged in (and connected to wifi obviously for remote monitoring). And, I believe you have to use a business account if you're going to connect many devices to the same monitoring platform. I recently attended a presentation that showcased IAQ monitoring for an affordable housing project, and they used Airthings Wave Plus. It seems to meet everything you're looking for, particularly the battery operated component - they have a 16 month battery life when operating over Bluetooth, which is quite impressive: https://www.airthings.com/wave-plus The project reported having very good results and experience with these devices. I like the flexibility that Hobos offer since you can add on components, but the Airthings is $230 and once you add a CO2 and VOC sensor onto a Hobo I think it would be more expensive than Airthings or Awair, though maybe their pricing has changed since I last looked. Steven Burke. LEED & WELL Faculty Director Of Sustainability m: 774.462.2044 consigli.com

If you have the tech capabilities, I really like this solution that Kjell Anderson presented at Greenbuild a few years ago (maybe more than a few?). It's low cost, and tacks on a couple of the features like MRT and light that most of the IAQ folks lack. It's a really great solution to the intended use of collecting post-occupancy data. They were also generous enough to make it open source so it could be replicated. At one point I thought it might be a nice intern project for somebody to work on over a summer, but it fell off my radar (so this is a nice reminder to myself that it's still a great solution and I ought to get one of the kids to crank out a bunch...)

https://lmnarchitects.com/tech-studio/works/podd/
https://github.com/lmnts/PODD
The biggest challenge I've run into in deploying sensors into our projects is more to do with the data collection side of it when we want to see it real time. We like the Kaiterra Sensedge IAQ device a lot - there's enterprise discounts available and then you can have your own API without any SAAS costs. But I have still had challenges with clients allowing us on to their wifi network for security reasons. So for our POEs and IAQ monitoring work, I've suggested to Kaiterra that they offer an option with a cell card, kind of like how you can get an iPad in either Wifi only or cellular options. There's also some interesting stuff happening with LoRaWAN that we're trying to implement at a building scale to just do an end around entirely on the owner's building network. 

OK, this is extremely interesting to me - I'm late to the Air Quality game and I need to get smarter about it.  For a first world problem, we're moving into a new office for one of our offices and the CM just quoted a price for the LEED CO2 monitors that is too high (high enough that I'm thinking I might want to get into the CO2 monitor business).  Is there a solution we can come up with like the PODD or one of these others that will (a) meet LEED's requirements and (b) actually offer something useful to us?  Will have to check with smarter folks than me on how to get PODD going. But I am an old dog looking to learn at least part of the new trick.  Thanks for any advice you all can share.

Jonathan - the Kaiterra unit is BACnet compatible so in addition to offering way more than CO2 alone, you can use it to drive your HVAC response to the conditions in the space. I would probably look at doing something like this that is both capable of the system operation as well as providing useful IAQ information. 

Pricing wise, it's also probably a lot more transparent than what you'll get from your CM if you reach out to them to establish business pricing. I think I'm technically not supposed to say what we pay... but it was about $750. So we've been deploying these in all our offices and working on integration into the BAS systems where we have control of it. 

The other nice thing about them is the recalibration component - basically they sell modules that look like battery packs that you just swap into where the old one was every couple years. There's not even a reasonable way to calibrate most of the other devices out there short of taking it off the wall and shipping it out somewhere. 

We don't have any interest or stake in Kaiterra, we just spent loads of time testing and evaluating a bunch before going that route. We keep about 20 extra on hand for a lot of the IAQ testing work we do, which is why I'd like to be able to more easily get data going wirelessly from them without taking to anybody's IT department. 

GGLO is going with AWAIR Omni sensors in our new Seattle & Boise offices scheduled to open this year.  https://www.getawair.com/solutions/office  We like the app interface that comes with them that provides real time monitoring of temperature, humidity, CO2, TVOC's, PM2.5, Noise and Light levels and install is easy with a CAT-6 wall box.  They recently lowered their price to $999 per sensor spread over 3 years, so about $28 per month.  After 3 years, this drops to $20/month/sensor.  Recommended spacing is 2000 sf / sensor.  Look forward to reporting back on how they perform in the coming year.

Jonathon, With regards to rolling your own solution, LEED/WELL testing usually requires calibrated and certified measurement devices, which tends to add a lot of cost (certification might be x10 the cost of the hardware itself!).  Luckily, LEED CO2 monitoring does not require certification and only requires CO2 sensors to have an accuracy better than 75 ppm or 5% of the reading, which is hit by many off-the-shelf CO2 sensor components for $100 or less.  However, the bulk of the time and effort in developing your own CO2 devices is going to be in interfacing with the HVAC system, which would involve additional hardware and potentially quite a bit of software development.  Be aware that the really cheap CO2 sensors (~$20 or less) don't actually measure CO2, but estimate it from something like a VOC measurement assuming very specific enviromental conditions: the CO2 estimates can be grossly incorrect in some cases, particularly in cases where the air quality is not good and we would really want to know what is going on. FYI, I am one of the PODD developers.  As opposed to some of the other sensor systems discussed in this thread, PODDs are targetted for temporary deployments (battery operated with own internal communication network).  We have learned a lot in developing these things and I am already planning out the next iteration of devices (goals: more modular, easier fabrication).  As an open-source project, we would be happy to discuss collaboration with anyone who might want to contribute, which would include ways of viewing/analyzing the data (any dashboard developers here?). If anyone wants to discuss the PODDs or IoT/sensor stuff in general, I would be happy to have a chat (Kjell might join as well).

This recent article provides some good information to ask and will help develop a matrix to compare sensors for specific applications.  https://www.prescriptivedata.io/content/guides/what-to-ask-when-evaluating-iaq-sensors?utm_source=Bisnow&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=2022BisnowHealthWellnessBrief&utm_content=Text1

I've been lurking on this conversation a bit, probably just to gather my thoughts. But in a timely coincidence, our IAQ working group white paper "Considerations for Continuous Air Quality Monitoring" is just about ready for public consumption and release by BuildingGreen. I'll upload a preview copy here (since John said it was okay!)  This is obviously a rapidly evolving field with lots of options and a wide array of costs, all depending on what the answers to questions like these are: 

• who will own the sensors? 
• who is looking at the data? 
• how is the data analyzed?
• do occupants need to view the data? and how?
• will the data be used to pursue any kind of third part certification? (RESET, WELL, LEED)
• what are the internet / cellular connection options available?
• what are the power connection options available?
• who will provide onsite support if monitors have issues or for calibration / maintenance?
• is there a specific visual need or concern?
• is there a specific monitor density we need to meet (ties into the Third Party question above)?
• is there a need or desire to provide BAS input for controls or is this totally stand-alone?

There are probably others (in the white paper or elsewhere), these are just off the top of my head.  And as most of you know, the range of options run from pre-packaged off the shelf SAAS based solutions with cloud interface and - usually - mobile applications (Kaiterra, Awair, AirThings). To more 'techy datalogger' solutions like HOBO or customized stations like PODD, or the "thermal comfort tripod" Heather Jauregui presented a while back. There are even pre-packaged PODD-like solutions available for purchase at a large price tag like the Topac Thermal Micro Climate assembly which includes WBGT, PMV, PPD, CO2 and VOC, PM + data logging with WIFI connection. All for the low price of ~$7,000 per station. Not to mention the 'wow factor' of having something like this in the space: http://topac.com/images/HD32_3TCAA.png On the far other side of the spectrum of complication and visual design - just because this is so fun and I purchased from the Kickstarter yesterday - there's also Canairi: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6919780498491764736/  

That is a great white paper -- thank you, IAQ group!