What is SBS

SBS is a serious air quality problem in homes, as well as in work places. An area can be described as sick mainly because people develop symptoms of illness such as headache, watery eyes, nausea, throat irritation, skin disorders and fatigue when spending considerable time indoors where there is a build up of air pollutants from household products, building materials, formaldehyde and/or respirable particles, and there is no precise definition of SBS. There are several important notes to consider  

An area of concern several years ago was new carpeting which sometimes released vapours, however, this is regulated by standards for emissions. There is also interest in some other synthetics, such as vinylics with phthalates, as a source of some SBS problems, which is still under investigation and will be discussed in following sections. 

As regards the diagnosis of a sick building, the rule of thumb is as follows when at least 20% of building occupants complain of the same medical symptoms from an unknown cause for at least two weeks the building can be suspected of being sick . 

SBS is rather a misnomer in as much as the syndrome can only be diagnosed by assessing the health of the building occupants, not by an examination of the building itself. 

Concentration and emission rate build up of pollutants indoors depend mainly on [2]  

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