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Explore building science with The Flow Lab Podcast, hosted by Ben Walker and Sam Meyers of Retrotec. Discover building envelope and HVAC ductwork airtightness, featuring discussions with industry leaders on evolving codes, energy efficiency, and sustainability. Learn from pioneers and case studies to enhance your expertise. Join our community and lead in building science. Follow The Flow Lab Podcast for insights and innovations in building performance.
17 Episodes
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Most “Indoor Air Quality upgrades” are just gadgets in a box. And a lot of them can make things worse. HVAC and building science veteran John Ellis joins Sam Myers and Ben Walker to break down what actually moves the needle in a home: thermal comfort, ventilation, filtration, humidity control, building pressure, and source control. If you build, renovate, or work on HVAC, this episode will change how you think about “clean air” and what it takes to actually deliver it. Video Notes...
Everyone blames the HVAC System. Most of the time, that’s wrong. Nikki Krueger breaks down why modern homes struggle with humidity, even with high-efficiency systems, and why dehumidification has become a missing piece in comfort, health, and durability. Sam, Ben and Nikki talk crawl spaces, shoulder seasons, overcooling, air leakage, ventilation mistakes, and the real-world install details contractors keep getting wrong. If you work on houses, or live in one ... this conversation will chan...
High school students are building real, high-performance homes… and hitting 0.9 ACH50. Matt Blomquist joins The Flow Lab to unpack how his class builds tighter houses than most pros, why blower-door testing is a game-changer, and how hands-on education is shaping the next generation of builders. If you care about building science, air sealing, or the future of the trades, this episode hits hard. Matt Blomquist's Journey into Teaching and House Building (0:00) Starting the House Building Pro...
On this episode of Flow Lab, Ben Walker and Sam Myers sit down with Leilani Orr and Ty Branaman from the Grit Foundation to talk about a very practical way to grow the trades pipeline: youth camps where kids actually do the work. Instead of PowerPoints and lectures, these camps drop 12–17-year-olds into escape-room-style challenges with real tools, real wiring, and real jobsite scenarios. Mentors don’t just “show and tell," they use a Socratic, question-first approach so kids learn to think,...
Solar & heat pumps can be a dream team or a challenge when time‑of‑use rates and sloppy sizing collide. Brent Davidson joins Ben Walker and Sam Myers to share a contractor‑first playbook: fix the enclosure, model the real load, then pair PV, storage, and controls so bills go down and stay down. We discuss home battery technology, how TOU windows change design decisions, and why rules of thumb (500‑sq‑ft‑per‑ton) still wreck outcomes. Brent also previews the US Heat Pump Summit happening i...
The basics to help you understand homes as a system. Download our FREE ebook and start solving problems like a pro. 👉 https://bit.ly/flow-lab-ebook -------------------------------- In this episode of The Flow Lab Podcast, hosts Ben Walker and Sam Myers are joined by John Konstantakopoulos and Joseph Cheung to discuss the challenges of improving airtightness and energy efficiency in Australian homes. The conversation explores the nuances of building construction in Australia, where airtightnes...
The basics to help you understand homes as a system. Download our FREE ebook and start solving problems like a pro. 👉 https://bit.ly/flow-lab-ebook -------------------------------- In this episode of The Flow Lab Podcast, hosts Ben Walker and Sam Myers sit down with Sean Maxwell, Scheme Manager at ATTMA Australia & New Zealand, to discuss airtightness in buildings and the challenges of improving energy efficiency. From working with builders on airtightness practices to improve building ...
The basics to help you understand homes as a system. Download our FREE ebook and start solving problems like a pro. 👉 https://bit.ly/flow-lab-ebook -------------------------------- In this episode of The Flow Lab Podcast, hosts Ben Walker and Sam Myers sit down with Denali Jones, Technical Director at the Air Barrier Association of America (ABAA), to talk about how large buildings are tested for air tightness and where things often go wrong.Denali walks us through his journey from starting ou...
The basics to help you understand homes as a system. Download our FREE ebook and start solving problems like a pro. 👉 https://bit.ly/flow-lab-ebook -------------------------------- In this episode of The Flow Lab Podcast, hosts Ben Walker and Sam Myers are joined by Barry Cope, Managing Director of ATTMA (Air Tightness Testing and Measurement Association), affectionately known as "Mr. Blower Door" in the UK. Barry discusses how ATTMA grew from a small group of enthusiasts into a global leader...
The basics to help you understand homes as a system. Download our FREE ebook and start solving problems like a pro. 👉 https://bit.ly/flow-lab-ebook In this episode of The Flow Lab Podcast, hosts Ben Walker, Co-CEO of RetroTec and Sam Myers, building science specialist and RetroTec trainer, sit down with Kevin Hart, Founder and CEO of HavenIAQ, a company focused on transforming the way we monitor and control indoor air quality (IAQ). From his roots as an electrician in the trades to pionee...
The basics to help you understand homes as a system. Download our FREE ebook and start solving problems like a pro. 👉https://bit.ly/flow-lab-ebook In this episode of The Flow Lab Podcast, hosts Ben Walker, Co-CEO of RetroTec, and Sam Myers, building science specialist and RetroTec trainer, sit down with Niek-Jan Bink, Director/co-owner at ACIN instrumenten and mastermind behind innovative tools like the Flow Finder Mk2+ and the ADT. Niek shares his fascinating journey from climate resear...
The basics to help you understand homes as a system. Download our FREE ebook and start solving problems like a pro. 👉https://bit.ly/flow-lab-ebook In this episode of The Flow Lab, hosts Ben Walker, Co-CEO of RetroTec, and Sam Myers, building science specialist and RetroTec trainer, are joined by Amit Gupta, the CEO of Aeroseal. Together, they explain the innovative world of air sealing technology, focusing on ductwork and building envelope sealing. The conversation examines into the challen...
The basics to help you understand homes as a system. Download our FREE ebook and start solving problems like a pro. 👉https://bit.ly/flow-lab-ebook In this episode of The Flow Lab Podcast, hosts Ben Walker and Sam Myers continue their conversation with Brendan Reid, a pioneer in home performance and HVAC sales. Brendan shares expert knowledge into ductwork efficiency, sales strategies, and the science of customer communication. He explains why smaller HVAC systems often perform better, the r...
The basics to help you understand homes as a system. Download our FREE ebook and start solving problems like a pro. 👉https://bit.ly/flow-lab-ebook In this episode of The Flow Lab, hosts Ben Walker and Sam Myers sit down with Brendan Reid, an industry veteran and founder of Retrotec, to look into the history and evolution of blower door testing, energy auditing, and building performance. Brendan shares his journey from chimney sweeping in high school to pioneering the blower door industry, d...
The basics to help you understand homes as a system. Download our FREE ebook and start solving problems like a pro. 👉https://bit.ly/flow-lab-ebook In this episode of The Flow Lab, hosts Ben Walker and Sam Myers sit down with Colin Genge, founder of RetroTec and a pioneer in building science and HVAC innovation. They take a look at the origins of blower doors, the evolution of air tightness testing, and the future of energy conservation. Collin shares fascinating observations of the early da...
The basics to help you understand homes as a system. Download our FREE ebook and start solving problems like a pro. 👉https://bit.ly/flow-lab-ebook Welcome to the very first and special episode of The Flow Lab, where hosts Ben Walker and Sam Myers sit down with Harold Orr, a pioneering figure in building science and energy efficiency. Harold shares the fascinating story behind the invention of the blower door, the groundbreaking Saskatchewan Conservation House, and how these innovations shaped...
Welcome to The Flow Lab Podcast by Retrotec! This is a project that Ben and Sam have been working on for a while. The goal is to provide education and news on technology advancements in the industry through a new platform. In each episode, we interview industry leaders and innovators whether they have been in the industry for a while or are up-and-coming pros. Our first episode drops next week with special guest Harold Orr: Inventor of the blower door. Follow Hosts: Ben Walker (Co-CEO, R...
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