COVID 19-Punjab govt issue important advisory on use of AC’s / coolers in houses, public places
Kanwar Inder Singh/ royalpatiala.in/ Chandigarh
Punjab health and family welfare department has issue an advisory- what to do, how to use air conditioners, air coolers, desert coolers in houses, offices, hospitals, shopping malls, malls, factories etc due to Covid 19 pandemic.
Giving details here , an official spokesperson of the Punjab Government said that with the onset of summer season in the past few weeks, concerns with regard to the safety and usage of Air conditioners/coolers etc. in the wake of COVID-19 pandemics have been raised. The Air-conditioning systems generally work on the principle of re-circulating the air inside the room and in the current COVID-19 situation, there are apprehensions that the air conditioning poses a threat to other people especially in large facilities such as malls, offices, hospitals, health centres etc. The State has therefore decided to come up with an advisory to allay all such apprehensions and concerns with regard to safety and usage of Air conditioning/coolers etc. in different settings.
Divulging about the guidelines for usage of air conditioning in various settings, he said that in resident application re circulation of cool air by Room Air Conditioners must be accompanied by outdoor air intake through slightly open windows and exhaust by natural ex-filtration. The room temperature should be set between 24-27 degrees Celsius and the relative humidity should be maintained between 40% – 70%. The Air conditioners should be serviced often so as to keep the filters clean. Exhaust fans can be installed in the rooms containing a large number of people so as to create a negative pressure in the room and ensure the entry of fresh air in the premises. The circulated air inside the room should be vented out frequently.
COVID 19-Punjab govt issue important advisory on use of AC’s / coolers in houses, public places.Talking about the evaporative/ desert air cooler he said that tt is advisable to prevent dust entry and maintain hygiene. Evaporative cooler tanks must be cleaned and disinfected and the water drained and refilled frequently. He said that the evaporative air coolers must be cleaned and disinfected at regular intervals. The water tank should be emptied and then wiped gently with a soft cloth, sponge and warm water to eliminate moldy residue that may have built up since the previous cleaning. The tank can also be washed with mild soapy water and then flushed out with clean water. He said that for the cooling pads and air vents, a mixture of 50-50 water and vinegar should be used to soak and rinse the pads and the vents. Evaporative coolers must draw air from outside to ensure good ventilation.
Punjab health department has prepared a document ‘COVID-19 Guidance Document for Air Conditioning which says that-(Please click the red words AC English) for the details/ notification in English
April,24,2020
