Stagnant air is making me sick

Q. My husband and I live on the top floor of a seven-story co-op. The building management has reduced the number of hours the roof exhaust fans are running, which means that the hallways, kitchens and bathrooms -- windowless rooms -- are unventilated. The fans are turned on only from 6 to 9 a.m. and 4 to 9:30 p.m.

The air is stagnant, odors move from apartment to apartment and over the winter, temperatures were close to 80 degrees, sometimes with the windows wide open! The air feels terribly unhealthy. Are there any laws covering exhaust fan operation?

A. Yes, there are. I made an "exhaustive" study of the International Building Code, New York Edition, and found it unspecific, instead referring to the separate Mechanical Code. While that code states that "every occupied space shall be ventilated by natural means ... or by mechanical means," your building falls under the older codes in the Multiple Dwelling Law.

I also contacted the local Building Department in your jurisdiction. Not only was the commissioner of the department extremely helpful, he pinpointed the actual section of the code and, after faxing me a copy of the pertinent page, reviewed your issues in detail.

The main reason for always consulting the various codes, and also contacting a local jurisdiction, is that from venue to venue, an official's interpretation of one code taking precedence over another is the only way to be sure of getting a reliable answer. The building codes, a section of the law foreign to most legal authorities, are a set of practical and applied minimum requirements for constructing and safely operating buildings.

While the latest codes state, in the section identifying when natural or mechanical means are required, "during the periods of time that the room or space is occupied," the older code, under which your building was constructed, states much more specifically that "such system of ventilation shall be maintained and operated continuously to provide at least four air changes per hour of the air volume ... from six o'clock in the morning until midnight in all parts used for dwelling purposes."