CSA Group CSA F300:22 National Standard of Canada Residential depressurization

Preface

This is the second edition of CSA F300, Residential depressurization. It supersedes the previous edition published in 2013.

This Standard provides homeowners, contractors, equipment manufacturers, and others involved in Canadian houses with information to help identify when residential depressurization could cause a health risk, and provides solutions to prevent or mitigate the build-up of combustion products in the house. It is intended for those who sell and install fuel-burning appliances and ventilation equipment, as well as designers, home builders, renovators, tradespeople, building officials, utilities, and homeowners.

Major changes to this edition include:

a) standard being revised to apply to new houses and existing houses;

b) removal of the −5 Pa limit for solid fuel-burning appliances and the inclusion of CO alarm requirements for all solid fuel-burning appliances;

c) inclusion of requirements related to the Depressurization Test Condition (DTC) test for all houses with non-solid, fuel-burning, spillage-susceptible appliances;

d) inclusion of a −10 Pa limit for houses without non-solid, fuel-fired, spillage-susceptible equipment at the continuous ventilation condition;

e) inclusion of a −25 Pa limit for houses without non-spillage-susceptible equipment and/or wood[1]burning equipment at the DTC; and

f) inclusion of requirements involving kitchen exhaust fans (if present) when conducting the depressurization test (i.e., all fans must be operated instead of only kitchen exhaust fans with capacities greater than 75 L/s).

CSA Group acknowledges that the development of this Standard was made possible, in part, with the use of specific forms included from the Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Institute of Canada.

This Standard is considered suitable for use for conformity assessment within the stated scope of this Standard.

This Standard was prepared by the Technical Committee on Residential Depressurization, under the jurisdiction of the Strategic Steering Committee on Fuels and Appliances, and has been formally approved by the Technical Committee.

This Standard has been developed in compliance with Standards Council of Canada requirements for National Standards of Canada. It has been published as a National Standard of Canada by CSA Group.

Notes:

1) Use of the singular does not exclude the plural (and vice versa) when the sense allows.

2) Although the intended primary application of this Standard is stated in its Scope, it is important to note that it remains the responsibility of the users of the Standard to judge its suitability for their particular purpose.

3) This Standard was developed by consensus, which is defined by CSA Policy governing standardization — Code of good practice for standardization as “substantial agreement. Consensus implies much more than a simple majority, but not necessarily unanimity”. It is consistent with this definition that a member may be included in the Technical Committee list and yet not be in full agreement with all clauses of this Standard.

4) To submit a request for interpretation of this Standard, please send the following information to [email protected] and include “Request for interpretation” in the subject line:

a) define the problem, making reference to the specific clause, and, where appropriate, include an illustrative sketch;

b) provide an explanation of circumstances surrounding the actual field condition; and

c) where possible, phrase the request in such a way that a specific “yes” or “no” answer will address the issue.Committee interpretations are processed in accordance with the CSA Directives and guidelines governing standardization and are available on the Current Standards Activities page at standardsactivities.csagroup.org.

5) This Standard is subject to review within five years from the date of publication. Suggestions for its improvement will be referred to the appropriate committee. To submit a proposal for change, please send the following information to [email protected] and include “Proposal for change” in the subject line:

a) Standard designation (number);

b) relevant clause, table, and/or figure number;

c) wording of the proposed change; and

d) rationale for the change.

1 Scope

1.1

This Standard describes the methods for determining the level of depressurization and solutions to mitigate risk arising from depressurization.

1.2

This Standard applies to detached, semi-detached, and row houses equipped with an exhaust device(s). It also applies to houses with secondary suites equipped with a separate exhaust device(s).

1.3

This Standard does not address indoor air quality issues such as

a) the presence of volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions from building materials or contents;

b) the presence of mould in houses; or

c) the presence of pollutants from other sources, such as stored chemical products.

① 1.4

This Standard does not address radon or the impact of residential depressurization on radon infiltration and mitigation.

1.5

The values given in SI units are the units of record for the purposes of this Standard. The values given in parentheses are for information and comparison only.

1.6

In this Standard, “shall” is used to express a requirement, i.e., a provision that the user is obliged to satisfy in order to comply with the Standard; “should” is used to express a recommendation or that which is advised but not required; and “may” is used to express an option or that which is permissible within the limits of the standard.

Notes accompanying clauses do not include requirements or alternative requirements; the purpose of a note accompanying a clause is to separate from the text explanatory or informative material.

Notes to tables and figures are considered part of the table or figure and may be written as requirements.

Annexes are designated normative (mandatory) or informative (non-mandatory) to define their application.