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I live on the 21st floor of a building and I ride an elevator everyday.

I was wondering if I got stuck in the elevator for an extended length of time, could I use up all of the air in the elevator car and suffocate?

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Well, Nicholas White survived 41 hours trapped in an elevator. – Andres May 31 '11 at 14:48
Elevators are ventilated at both the top and bottom. Even when the electrical ventilators (fans) are off, air flow occurs simply because you're in a tall shaft, and your body heat is creating a draft. Can't find any easy to reference elevator design docs right now, though. – Adam Davis May 31 '11 at 15:41
@Adam, I didn't think it was sealed tightly enough for it to be a problem. I figured this site would help me put my fears 100% to rest though. – jjnguy May 31 '11 at 15:46
Most areas have specific codes on elevator hoistway ventillation. This one, for instance, requires that the entire hoistway air be exchanged 12 times per hour: nyc.gov/html/dob/downloads/pdf/cc_chapter30.pdf . Still haven't found anything specific enough for my taste though. – Adam Davis May 31 '11 at 15:54
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No for Normal / slow speed elevators, they usually have a ventilator to run a fan.

High speed elevators are some times are pressurized , those I guess may block out air ventilation.

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Hi Ravi. You need to add some references to support your claims. – Oddthinking May 31 '11 at 13:05
and if you are trapped due to a power outage, the ventilator fan won't be running. – fred May 31 '11 at 14:26
Ah , Well this is my first answer here , Not sure I can get claims for these, should I go ahead and delete the answer? @Fred : but the ventilators allow air to flow through , the fan is just for the extra speed :) – Ravi Vyas May 31 '11 at 15:41
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