We have been very fortunate that we have not yet had a COVID-19 outbreak at the gym. The public health measures of increased physical distance, decreased class sizes, and masks have worked to ensure that no one has contracted the coronavirus at our gym. This week we took an additional step to create a safe and healthy environment for our staff and members. We installed carbon dioxide monitors. We have been learning more about how increased levels of carbon dioxide correlate with increased viral load. We were inspired by this story about a CrossFit gym in Virginia where a Coach caught COVID and did not pass it to any of her members because of the increased air circulation. We did a bit more reading and discovered an article in Smart Buildings Magazine that also discusses the use of carbon dioxide as a proxy for COVID-19 transmission risk. According to that article: “Since the coronavirus is spread through the air, higher CO2 levels in a room likely mean there is a higher chance of transmission if an infected person is inside”, leading aerosol scientist Prof Shelly Miller writes in The Conversation. “Simply put, the more fresh, outside air inside a building, the better. Bringing in this air dilutes any contaminant in a building, whether a virus or a something else, and reduces the exposure of anyone inside.” We are gathering baseline data this week. Based on what we have learned we are setting 2 important thresholds. When the carbon dioxide levels reach 1000ppm we will turn on all the fans. When they reach 1200ppm we will open the doors and windows.
We will continue to learn more about using carbon dioxide as a proxy for COVID-19 transmission risk and will adapt our current best practices to keep our members and staff healthy. Our goal is ZERO transmission at the gym. So far we have been able to achieve this. With our new data driven decisions we are excited to keep aiming for ZERO.
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