Where the IAQ Industry Connects and Learns

IAQA University

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IAQA members can purchase a course for $45 or $75 for non-members.

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IAQ Overview Courses

Introduction to IAQ

IAQU 101

Goal: Understand the key, fundamental concepts of indoor air quality and identify the root causes of IAQ problems and their solutions.

Lesson 1: Definitions

Objective – Define the following concepts: air, indoor air quality, indoor environmental quality, and acceptable IAQ.

Lesson 2: History

Objective – Understand that indoor air quality is not a new phenomenon and be able to cite some historical examples of IAQ problems and their solutions.

Lesson 3: IAQ Problems

Objective – Identify four elements of IAQ problems: Source, Pathways, HVAC, and Occupants.

Lesson 4: IAQ Solutions

Objective – Identify four solutions that attack the root cause of IAQ problems and identify four additional solutions that will improve IAQ in a general way.

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IAQ and Health

IAQU 102

Goal: Understand the key ways in which indoor air quality affects human health.

Lesson 1: Categories of Health Effects

Objective – Distinguish between: acute and chronic disease; local and systemic effects; toxicity and hazard; and opportunistic and obligate pathogens.

Lesson 2: Dose-response

Objective – Describe how dose affects response and how to graphically represent the relationship.

Lesson 3: Susceptibility

Objective – Understand susceptible groups such as infants, elderly, genetically predisposed, immunocompromised, and previously exposed.

Lesson 4: Routes of exposure

Objective – Describe all the routes of entry and be able to provide examples of each. These include ingestion, cutaneous, eye contact, and inhalation.

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Building Related Illness

IAQU 103

Goal: Understand the concepts of sick building syndrome and building related illness, and both symptoms and illnesses that may occur due to time spent in buildings.

Lesson 1: Sick Building Syndrome

Objective – Define sick building syndrome, cite its common symptoms, and apply some of the conclusions from large-scale studies into its causes.

Lesson 2: Building Related Illness

Objective – Define building related illness, cite the major categories, and name examples of each.

Purchase IAQU 103

Preventing IAQ Problems I

IAQU 104

Goal: Understand practical steps to prevent indoor air quality problems. This course focuses on healthier alternatives to traditional cleaning, redecorating, and pest management.

Lesson 1: Cleaning

Objective – Identify healthier alternatives to traditional chemical cleaners, dusters, and vacuums. The student will also understand how healthier alternatives can improve indoor air quality.

Lesson 2: Redecorating

Objective – Identify healthier alternatives to traditional paint and furniture used in redecorating projects, and learn about several green product standards that will help in selections of healthier alternatives.

Lesson 3: Pest Management

Objective – Distinguish between traditional pest management and integrated pest management.

Purchase IAQU 104

Preventing IAQ Problems II

IAQU 105

Goal: Understand how to better operate and maintain buildings to ultimately prevent indoor air quality problems from happening. Also, gain an understanding of how many aspects of operation and maintenance can both improve and degrade indoor air quality.

Lesson 1: HVAC

Objective – Understand how ventilation, filtration, and humidity control plays a critical role in preventing IAQ problems. Also, understand how preventative maintenance of the HVAC system can help prevent IAQ issues.

Lesson 2: Managing Chemicals

Objective – Apply the four simple rules for managing on-site chemicals. Also, learn to better manage material safety data sheets to comply with federal laws.

Lesson 3: Entry Systems

Objective – Identify the three key elements of an effective entry system.

Lesson 4: Remodeling

Objective – Apply guidelines to ensure the student’s next remodeling project minimizes the risk of IAQ problems.

Purchase IAQU 105

IAQ Management

IAQU 106

Goal: Develop an indoor air quality management plan for a building that will ensure a healthy, comfortable, and productive indoor environment.

Lesson 1: Top Management

Objective – Describe the importance of having the support of top management, along with an adequate budget to carry out activities.

Lesson 2: Management Plan

Objective – Describe the key components of an IAQ management plan and develop an IAQ Notebook specific to a building.

Lesson 3: Personnel

Objective – Identify the roles and responsibilities of personnel assigned to manage indoor air quality.

Lesson 4: IAQ Assessment

Objective – Distinguish between proactive and reactive assessments and describe their advantages and disadvantages

Purchase IAQU 106

Handling IAQ Complaints

IAQU 107

Goal: Implement a complaint response system to better collect, log, and respond to IAQ issues that may come up.

Lesson 1: Complaint Collection

Objective – Establish a simple method for collecting and logging IAQ complaints.

Lesson 2: Complaint Response

Objective – Describe practical steps to be followed when responding to an IAQ complaint.

Lesson 3: Outside Expertise

Objective – Identify the situations that call for the use of outside expertise.

Purchase IAQU 107

Regulations, Standards, and Guidelines

IAQU 108

Goal: Become familiar with the many different types of guidance documents and implement them in the student field of practice.

Lesson 1: Regulations

Objective – Distinguish regulations from other guidance, identify the main regulatory agencies in the United States, and cite some examples of state regulations.

Lesson 2: Model Building Codes

Objective – Define a model building code and determine what codes are in force in the student location.

Lesson 3: Standards

Objective – Cite the most important standards related to indoor air quality, and distinguish those that are American National Standards.

Lesson 4: Guidelines

Objective – Distinguish the relative importance of guidelines when compared to regulations and standards.

Purchase IAQU 108

Exposure Guidelines

IAQU 109

Goal: Become familiar with exposure guidelines and know when, where, why, and how to apply them.

Lesson 1: Non-cancer, Non-chronic

Objective – Identify and cite exposure guidelines for non-cancer endpoints from non-chronic exposures that apply to the general public, workers, and emergency responders.

Lesson 2: Non-cancer, Chronic

Objective – Learn to look up chemicals in multiple references to establish non-chronic exposure guidelines for non-cancer endpoints.

Lesson 3: Cancer, Chronic

Objective – Learn to look up unit risk estimates and determine the excessive cancer cases associated with a carcinogen’s concentration.

Purchase IAQU 109