Air purifiers installed in sanctuary HVAC system (Activity Report)

JUST IN TIME for the High Holy Day crowds, a pair of air purifiers was installed yesterday in our historic sanctuary’s HVAC system—one for each blower. These devices use needlepoint bipolar ionization (NBPI) technology, as described HERE—from when we were preparing to install one in our school building.

One of the new ion generators,
mounted inside the forced-air unit (FAU)

As long as the HVAC blowers are on, these purifiers will be generating ions that the fans are casting out into our large hall, where the ions can neutralize airborne viruses and bacteria right where people are sitting—without needing to wait for the air to recirculate to the HVAC filter. Hence I believe that these devices will be significantly reducing the airborne transmission of disease inside our sanctuary.

These ion generators are designed for a system that is up to 2.4 times as large as ours. That’s good, because our retrofitted system is only about half the size needed when the sanctuary is full of people. In other words, our air purifiers are properly sized for the space. 

For links to evidence that the ions produced by this device are indeed effective at neutralizing airborne pathogens directly, see HERE.

Duct smoke detectors installed in sanctuary HVAC system (Activity Report)

ALTHOUGH I HAD provisionally concluded that duct smoke detectors were not required in our sanctuary, as described HERE, I nonetheless looked for an opportunity to get an authoritative opinion. That opportunity presented itself exactly one week ago, when Tom Nasrollahi, a mechanical (HVAC) engineer, made a site visit as a consultant on our main-floor restroom renovation project.

One of the new duct smoke detectors

Unhesitatingly, Tom replied that these devices were indeed required in our sanctuary, according to code. 

He explained that even though each of the sanctuary’s two systems has its own thermostat and each one by itself has a small enough blower to be exempt, they must together be treated as one overall system because they both participate in conditioning the same space. The system’s cubic feet per minute (CFM) for the total space is what counts.

Happily, a pair of detectors was installed yesterday. They were placed just upstream of the air filter before the blower intake (see photo). 

Thus we have made a capital improvement (betterment) that addresses a life-safety risk, which is of course the highest priority use for our precious funds.

(How did it come about that the installer of our replacement heating system in 2017 did not include these devices at that time? Maybe I don’t want to know.…)

Shiny brass (Condition Report)

IN HONOR OF the High Holy Days, most of the brass fixtures in the sanctuary have now been professionally polished. This includes the door pulls and push plates between the lobby and the sanctuary, and on restroom doors. The difference will be immediately evident when you walk in.

And in a nod to the value of preventive maintenance, a protective clear coat has been added to those items, so as to preserve their shine.

Some other brass fixtures in the sanctuary, such as the banisters leading to the bimah, were manually polished. They will continue to need repolishing each year (but see below).

NOMENCLATURE:   The Historic Structure Report (2003), in its cataloging of our sanctuary building’s architectural features, most often employs the term copper alloy rather than “brass.” The more general term is preferred in preservation and museum circles as a matter of accuracy. That is, the term “brass” is seen as possibly misleading because of the widely varying proportions of its ingredients (usually copper and zinc, but sometimes also other elements), which can shade into bronze, which is likewise a copper alloy. But in this blog I will continue to use the more common and informal term.

PRESERVATION TIP:   The salty air in our ocean-adjacent location means that our brass tarnishes relatively quickly. Yet for brass items that are not meant to be touched (such as the chandeliers in the Social Hall), there is a relatively easy hack: After polishing such items, rub them with a cloth that has been sprayed with WD-40. The resulting thin layer of that lubricant will help to protect the brass over time. 

(Indeed, it is said that WD-40 can also be used as brass polish, by spraying it on the metal and letting it sit for 15 minutes or so, and then rubbing it off.)

CONTACT INFO:   The vendor that polished and coated our brass items was: V&M Metal Polishing (Chatsworth), vmmetalpolishing@gmail.com 818-632-0603, "ask for Vidal.”

APPRECIATION:   Thank you to Carole Stein and Ginni Rosenfeld for this round of brass polishing! Long may it shine!

Update on the stairlift (Draft Proposal)

AS OUR ARCHITECT prepares to meet with City officials next month to discuss our entry accessibility plan, it is timely to revisit the stairlift component—which was introduced HERE (Feb. 12) and updated HERE (May 8). 

Again, the overall goal is to ease the entry to (and exit from) our sanctuary building for people who find stairs difficult. Our doing so is required in order to get building per­mits to make further alterations to the facility, such as expanded restrooms.

Below the jump, I give updates on three aspects: recommended equipment, cost, and the permitting experience of a nearby church.

Plenum at play in the main-floor Ladies Lounge (Background Report)

ALTHOUGH SELDOM NOTICED, a plenum (shaft) runs from floor to ceiling through the lobby-level “Ladies Lounge.” (It continues through the mezzanine, too.) It’s behind the wall that is straight across from the door to the lounge from the lobby. What is it doing there?

Below the jump, this post discloses what’s inside that plenum—and why.