Coronavirus Recommendations: Here’s How Bus Air Conditioners are Disinfected

People concern about the safety of public transit. Bus is the most common type of vehicle for public transport. As a risky place for infection, the disinfection of bus becomes a hot topic due to the outbreak of Coronavirus disease (COVID-19). It affects not only the safety of global public transportation system, but the battle of human beings against the Coronavirus.
If you google the latest news on buses and Coronavirus disease, it’s not difficult to read reports relating to the government’s efforts on cleaning and disinfecting of buses (city bus, school bus etc.). On March 3, 2020, the Seattle Times reported that King County Metro Transit was able to sanitize frequently touched bus surfaces (like turnstiles, handrails) with disinfectants daily to help prevent spread of COVID-19.
On March 10, 2020, beginning the week, all New York school buses must be cleaned and disinfected every workday night to prevent Coronavirus.
On March 10, 2020, Warsaw, the capital city of Poland, all its city bus stations was undergoing comprehensive disinfection and electrostatic cleaning.

Air Conditioning System is an integral part of buses. As the top manufacturer of bus HVAC systems, It’s Guchen Industry’s responsibility to let our new and regular customers know how to use and disinfect the bus air conditioner so as to help passengers stay safe from the novel coronavirus while on buses.

TOPIC NO.1 Should the AC System be Turned on while the Bus is in Motion?
Turn Off the Bus Air-Conditioners:
It is NOT suggested to keep the air conditioning on in buses at the critical time in the fight against the coronavirus. On top of disinfecting high-contact surfaces, the bus HVAC system needs to be switched off. One reason is that earlier studies in China have shown that the novel coronavirus thrive better in cool climates. The other reason is that in an enclosed space with air-conditioning (like in a AC bus), the airflow is driven by the bus aircon system. The transmission distance of COVID-19 will exceed the commonly recognized safe distance.
Guchen Industry suggests OPENING bus windows to make sure as much fresh air as possible is coming in, to reduce risk of getting infected by the novel coronavirus. TOPIC NO.2 Is It Suggested to Turn on Fresh Air System?
It is NOT advised to use the fresh air ventilation system INDEPENDENTLY in a closed environment. Only when windows and auxiliary vents are opened simultaneously can the bus fresh-air system be turned on, the reason of which is because only the fresh air system cannot supply an adequate supply of fresh air without supplementary ventilation.
Do what Guchen Industry tells you will reduces the chances of being infected.

TOPIC NO.3 When Turning on Fresh Air System to Get the bus Sufficient Ventilation, What should be Noticed Every Day?
◆ Removing and cleaning the dust filter more than once a day (take the filter out to prevent dust from spreading inside the bus). Let it soak for 30 minutes in chlorine containing disinfectant, the available chlorine should be between 250mg/L～500mg/L, and then rinsing it with clean water.
Tips: It is not recommended to use alcohol to disinfect in the bus to prevent fire.
◆ Some traditional bus air conditioners have been equipped with another 2 functions: Purification and Ozone disinfection. You can operate as follows to purify the air and disinfect the bus body: For more assistance, Please contact with our technician: info@guchen.com

TOPIC NO.4 Whether the Air Duct and Air Outlet should be Disinfected or not?
The answer is absolutely YES.
Methods to disinfect the air outlet and air duct of bus A/C system are same with those to the bus, which includes: 1> disinfection of air conditioner with ozone; 2> using ultrasounds; 3> manual application of chemical disinfectant etc. It was demonstrated that the highest disinfection efficiency is to combine all the methods together. 

-------------------------------