BUILDTank / buildCAST

Patrick Nielsen is the Global Technical Products Manager for Broan Nutone, a leading manufacturer of residential ventilation solutions. Patrick has 20 years of experience with Broan including roles in product development, where he used his engineering background to launch a wide range of innovative ventilation products to solve a variety of IAQ and customer challenges. More recently his focus has been codes and standards, projecting longer-term product needs/opportunities and training.  He serves as chair on the Home Ventilating Institute (HVI) Board of Directors, chairs their Codes and Standards committee and is active in multiple other committees addressing industry issues, including ASHRAE, RESNET, EEBA and IAQA. Patrick Nielsen on LinkedIn BROAN NUTONE

In 1982, a group of building professionals from around the world gathered in Pine Island, Minnesota for the first Energy & Environmental Building Alliance (EEBA) meetup with the goal, to develop criteria for the construction of what we now call high performance and sustainable homes.  For over 40 years now (EEBA) has been a trusted resource for building science information and education in the construction industry.  To serve the EBBA mission to advance the leading edge of building science knowledge and sustainable business practices in the residential construction community, EEBA delivers educational resources and events including an annual high performance building summit, their free webinar and podcasts, an online construction academy, and training events held around the country. You can learn more at EEBA.org I went to my first EEBA home building summit in the mid 1990s as I chased building science education and was introduced to a group of passionate individuals who are now called the legends of EEBA. In this podcast which was recorded at the 2025 EEBA Summit opening session titled State of our industry: Perspective from the EEBA Legends, you will hear first from Mark Laliberte with Construction Instruction then Joe Lstiburek from Building Science Corp, Gord Cook from Building Knowledge Canada and Construction Instruction, Sam Rashkin, former director of the EnergyStar program and Gene Meyers with Thrive Homebuilders. You will also hear a bit from Pat Heulman recently retired from the University of Minnesota. EnjoyEnergy & Environmental Building Alliance (EEBA)

Clay McCombe is the heat pump Program Manager for the Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG) who servs 59 jurisdictions in the Denver metro area. Recently DRCOG was awarded a $200 million grant from the EPA aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other harmful air pollutants. Clays focus on heat pumps is based on beneficial electrification and improving the air quality in the Denver Metro area, but he has found himself deep into workforce development and introducing statewide licensing for HVAC contractors in Colorado. Why, because the HVAC industry still is not stepping up to design and install their HVAC product properly. From a licensing perspective it is primarily a health and safety issue, but we will see significant performance improvements if training and licensing take off in Colorado and across the country. DRCOG Building Decarbonization programCity of Denver Climate Action, Sustainability and Resiliency (CASR)ESCO Institute-HVAC ExcellenceEnergy Skilled Recognition from the DOEFreakEnomics - Is Professional Licensing a Racket?The Licensing Racket: How We Decide Who Is Allowed to Work, and Why It Goes Wrong By Rebecca Allensworth

Matt Brill is a builder, innovator, and advocate for sustainable living who carries on a legacy of four generations of craftsmanship starting in the 1930 with his great grandfather. Steeped in that tradition, Matt founded Bauen Build to bring Passive homes to Boulder and the Colorado Front Range.  “Bauen” a German word, means “to build” or to construct out of wood, which is a nod to the passive house principals and attention to details that Matt has instilled in his company.  Bauen’s ultra high-performance homes integrate advanced building science, sustainable methods, repeatable and constructable high-performance details that continue the path of making high performance construction mainstream construction.Bauen BuildNailing Passive House Details with Better Jobsite CommunicationHow to Translate Drawings into Airtight RealityFree Heat from Boulder Weekly

Sam Rashkin was my first guest on the buildCAST and he graciously agreed to speak with me again. If you don’t know Sam personally, you probably know of Sam as he has presented hundreds, if not thousands, of workshops and seminars to the construction industry that continually is interested I what he has to say.   After a long career as a licensed architect and serving on the national steering committees for the U.S. Green Building Councils (USGBC) LEED for Homes program as well as a number of other endeavors to promote better construction, Sam becoming most well-known as the National Director, visionary, and leading influencer on the team that put the EnergyStar for New Homes Program on the map.  His fingerprints are also on the EPA’s WaterSense label and Indoor airPLUS program as well as the NAHB’s Green Building Guidelines. At the end of Sam’s career in Government Sam moved from the EPA to the DOE to help broaden the adoption of DOE’s Zero Energy Ready Homes Program. Sam is a thought leader in the construction industry as demonstrated in his books Retooling the U.S. Housing Industry and Housing 2.0 a Disruption Survival Guide, which is one reason it is always such a pleasure to speak with him anytime I have the opportunity.Sam Rashkin on LinkedInSam’s Writing/Blog on Green BuilderBooks by Sam RashkinEnergyStar

Brad Smith has now been with the City of Fort Collins Colorado for 9 years working with the building department, the municipal utility, and directly with builders and trade partners to ensure that homes built in the city meet the requirements of the Energy Code.He is continuing a tradition in Fort Collins of goal setting but more importantly measurement and data gathering to ensure that the city gets what it expects. Brad is leading thecodes segment of the cities trek to carbon neutrality by 2030 and has helped to lay out a performance based Zero Carbon Construction Code aimed at achieving zero carbon emissions for all new construction by 2030. This involves determining energy and carbon reduction targets for each three-year release of the cities energy code and then giving builders and architects the freedom to determine the most cost-effective way of achieving the requirement.Brad Smith on LinkedIn Current City of Fort Collins Energy Code Fort Collins Zero Carbon Construction CodeMary's Mountain Cookies

Kim and Juta Cinco are Baseline Design named after Baseline Road, a landmark road in Boulder County that marks the Earth's 40th parallel north. They took inspiration from this line of latitude for how rooted in place and foundational it is. The husband-and-wife team have recently designed and completed their first passive house in the Marshall Fire rebuild and are working on their second and third. I wanted to learn about the design process and how it may differ when striving to achieve passive house certification. Our conversation reconfirms that setting performance goals, developing design constraints, having integrated designmeetings with the construction team, and understanding the base building science are all key metrics to better ensure a successful project.Kim Cinco on LinkedInBaseline DesignHammerWell

Aron Jones is the Co-founder of Big Dog Construction in Grand Manan, New Brunswick, Canada.He started his career in the military which led him to become a construction technician and then ultimately a builder once his service ended. In Canada it is common to enter the trades through an organize apprenticeship program call Red Seal and although Aron was already building, he received his carpentry Red Seal in 2002.  His experience with the Red Seal apprenticeship program instilled in Aron a desire to teach and be a mentor himself, which he now is also bringing his true passion for building science too.  His desire to both teach, and give back is making the industry better and may be best exemplified through his co-founding of International Flashing Awareness Day in 2021 with his friend Mike Guertin. This annual event on Instagram is used to demonstrate why flashing is important to a building and what happens when it is not installed or used properly. Aron Jones on LinkedInBig Dog ConstructionRed Seal programCanadian R2000 Program VB installationInternational Flash Me day 8/26/2025

I spoke with Brent Davidson, the Creator of the US heat Pump Summit which will be held in Worcester Massachusetts on November 18th and 19th of 2025 and again in September of 2026. Brent saw an opportunity to develop a niche conference that is gaining momentum alongside the push to electrify our homes. The aspirations of this summit have grown to not only tackling the technical side of air and water heat pumps but also the business opportunities that are arising quickly from the tremendous growth and interest. The summit will have a full track for owners and managers of businesses addressing issues like growth, sales and marketing, employee training, and managing that age-old question of working in the business or on the business. The Summit will also host presentations and conversations with regulators, rebate providers and implementers, energy industry experts, members of the private equity investment community, and a full exhibitor hall.  If you are working within the world of Heat pumps or just interested, the US heat pump summit might just be the place to go this November.  Brent Davidson on LinkedIn US Heat Pump Summit brent@heatpumpsummit.org

Over a 30-year career in construction, Fernando Ruiz has become a dedicated proponent of building innovations and their relationship with affordable housing. He is the author of Building an affordable house which became clear in our conversation is not the same as building a cheap or poorly performing house. Fernando’s fundamental goal is to use his understanding of the rules contained in building codes, science, and value engineering to break the norms of our traditional thinking, to build homes that are attainable yet still essentially meet the needs and aspirations of his clients. It became clear to me that our building philosophies are aligned with each other. First, set a goal for each project, develop design parameters and principals for the project, and determine the most cost-effective way to achieve the goal. My goals often revolve around how the home performs and Fernando’s revolve around affordability, but you will see that regardless, our paths intersect.Fernando on LinkedInBuilding Affordable WebsiteBuilding Affordable on YouTubeFernando on FacebookFarndon on Instagram

Beau Brown is the founder of C & H inspection, a family owned and operated home inspection company located in Salt Lake City Utah. Beau started his career in the construction industry with his father and grandfather at the age of 10, building houses and garages all through his teens and early 20’s.  He then gained experience leading teams as a Chemical Technician conducting waste clean-ups with hazardous spill response teams. He went to school for a business degree, and you will see that although college was not for Beau business is and he has been able to leverage his business, marketing, and people skills to make C & H inspection one of the most respected home inspection companies in Salt Lake City. Beau has a large presence on social media, and we spent the first half of our time together diving deep into how social media works and how it has helped his business grow. Next, I learned that Beau is a people person, with a strong work ethic and integrity is a field that can be potentially fraught with conflicts of interest.  Since I started my first company offering home inspections, I was particularly interested in how the industry is now managing these conflicts. We ended our conversation talking about a new building code reference app that Beau is helping to launch, that potentially has the power to demystify the building code by putting the answers to code related questions at one’s fingertip.Beau Brown on InstagramC&H InspectionsInternational Association of Certified Home inspectors InterNACHIAmerican Society of Home Inspections ASHIHomeowners UniversityCode Pro App

Brian Shanks is the Manager of National Accounts and Governmental Affairs for Beazer Homes.  Beazer is a production home building company based in Atlanta, Georgia. The company is the 11th largest homebuilder in the United States and now operates in 13 states.Brian’s construction career has been aligned with energy-efficient and performance building in the world of large production builders, and now he is part of the team at Beezer Homes that is continuing the home builder’s evolution from building 100% EnergyStar home to committing to build and certify DOE Zero Energy Ready Homes.  When they had a presence in Colorado, my former companies did all the energy code and EnergyStar compliance work for Beezer Homes, so it was particularly interesting for me to learn more about Beazer’s continued efforts to build high performance homes in the production building arena.  Thank you, Brian, for sharing your building journey with us and for explaining some of the unique issues that production builders face.Brian Shanks on LinkedInBeezer HomesDOE Zero Energy Ready Home ProgramLeading Builder of America National Home Builder AssociationSouthFace Institute

Lisa Morey is a professional engineer and architectural designer who starting building with adobe bricks while living and working in New Zealand in the early 2000’s. While there she worked with a design/build firm that constructed nearly 50 earth block homes that was the catalyst for her company Colorado Earth.  Lisa is now a champion for earth block construction, not only how to make the earthen block and build the house, but also to understand how the science of thermal mass works. Lisa continually demonstrates the efficiency, resiliency, and carbon neutrality that can be gainusing earthen blocks and was recently recognized as a woman making contributions to reduce carbon emissions within the building sector.Thanks for explaining earth block construction to me and for all you do in the construction industry Lisa.Lisa on LinkedIn Colorado EarthPerlite Insulation InstituteEnergy I-corpsLisa’s white papersBOOK: Adobe Homes for All Climates

How did Sam Myers become the building scientist at Retrotec? Find out in this episode of the BUILDTank / buildCAST. Like most of us, the industry found Sam and a passion for building science blossomed. Unlike most of us Sam has created and grown his position in the industry on the back of his passion for finding unique ways of educating everyone that he comes in contact with. During the COVID most of the industry’s conferences and tradeshows moved to online platforms. To keep providing the industry with quality educational material, Sam built a virtual training lab athis home where he has taught and trained contractors and consultants all over the world. I enjoyed my conversation with Sam geeking out on building science and diagnostic testing and I think you will as well.Sam Myers on LinkedInRetrotecRetrotec on YouTubeAdvanced Energy Raleigh, NC Green Building Advisor ZPD Testing

Thanks for listening to the buildCAST. In this episode we hear from Steve Baden, the founding Executive director of the Residential Energy Services Network or RESNET. RESNET is the governing body of the HERS home energy rating industry which was established in 1995 by the National Association of State Energy Officials, Energy Rated Homes of America, and the National Mortgage Industry Association to develop a national market for home energy rating systems and energy-efficient mortgages.  I was in the first energy Rater training and became the 32nd certified rater in Colorado in 1995.  Soon after I met Steve at the first RESNET conference held at the Florida Solar Energy Center when I was on the board of directors of Energy Rated Homes of Colorado. Even before Jimmy Carter’s infamous, wear a sweater speech from the oval office Steve’s path to energy efficiency came though politics. He found himself in Alaska at the state energy office leading an initiative called “Warming Homes for Alaskans” which received the 1993 national award for the most outstanding state housing program, and which set the stage for a national home energy rating program that RESNET grew out of.Steve has worked in the residential energy efficiency field for 30 years, including eighteen years with home energy ratings and energy mortgages on both the state and national levels, and ten years administering the Alaska State Energy Office. Steve is the founding executive director of RESNET and has just announced that he will be retiring on December 31st, 2025.  I have known Steve from the beginning of the founding of RESNET and my time as a board member of Energy Rated Homes of Colorado and was so happy to have the opportunity to recap his career on the buildCAST before his last day.  Thanks for all you have done for the Industry Steve.Steve Baden on LinkedInRESNET - Residential Energy Services Network

Thank you to Nicole Tysvaer Founder and CEO of Symbi Homes for being on the BUILDCast. Symbi Homes is a sustainable construction firm reinventing home building with an emphasis on wellness, energy-efficiency and technology. Symbi short for Symbiosis immediately got my thinking about building science, systems thinking, and the synergistic interactions that take place in construction of high performance homes. Symbi Homes has decided to follow the DOE Zero Energy Ready Home program specifications to guide their path to high performance building. Uniquely they have also chosen to apply these high-performance specifications to a Queen Ann Victorian complex form as well as in their current remodel and addition current project. To me this beautifully demonstrates that homes of all shapes and sizes can pursue high performance building when project goals are clearly defined from the start.Nicole Tysvaer on LinkedInSymbi HomesDOE Zero Energy Ready Home ProgramSymbi Homes - Upcoming Educational SessionsMay 2025 - date and time tbd - Retro Rambler Pre-Drywall Walk Through (Kensington, MD)      Take a look inside the walls of this mid-century deep energy retrofit and addition project working towards Zero Energy Ready certification. August 2025 - date and time tbd - High-Performance Builder Expo  (Kensington, MD)      Tour the completed Retro Rambler high-performance home and learn about the sustainable products and processes used to create a net zero ready retrofit.For more information and updates on these events, sign-up for news on the Symbi Homes website.

We dove quickly into the Water Efficiency Rating Sore or WERS system with Mike Collignon Executive Director & Co Founder of the Green Builder Coalition.  So quickly in fact that we did not have time to talk much about the other cool things the coalition is doing, so definitely check out their website in the show notes to find out how they are a uniting voice for sustainable home building especially for the custom builder community In short, WERS is a performance-based water efficiency program for both new and existing residential properties. This approach to water efficiency preserves design freedom and product choice flexibility. Third-party analysis and data collection is utilized to generate both a score and predict water usage for single-family and multifamily properties. Especially here in the west and specifically in the southwest, more and more water utilities and jurisdictions are looking for ways to better manage water in the build environment so that builders can continue to meet our housing demand. Mike Collignon on LinkedIn Green Builder CoalitionWater Efficiency Rating Score (WERS)2025 Next Generation Water SummitOther Water based buildCAST Episodes#16-2021 Garry Klein's in Hot Water#22-2021 Jonah Schein WaterSense National Program Manager#1-2023 Teal Lehto Instagram's “Western Water Girl”#2-2023-rick-schultz-water efficiency supervisor townof Castle Rock Colorado

Vincent Deorio CEO, Mike Davidson Sales and Marketing, and Ben Walker Sr Architectural Manager at RedT homes, share what it’s taking to grow their company into a regional production builder that is offering LEED platinum homes. Their unique business model incorporates land acquisition, entitlement and design, architecture, and construction along with real estate-focused marketing and sales. Their focus on integrated design and thoughtful execution is helping them reimagine what sustainable development, construction, and sales means in Colorado.RedT HomesLEED for HomesbuildCAST #9-2022 Sand Adomatis and the Residential Green and Energy Efficient Addendum

Starting in tech, moving into solar, Stephen Kane found his home at SPAN where he is helping builders integrate smart electric load management to lower the cost of electrifying homes while giving homeowner’s a better user experience.  Our conversation touched on both new construction and existing homes as the move toward electrification is touching both worlds.  I have to say that I found our existing home conversation particularly interesting since I am on a glid path to electrification of my own home. That being said, I see this technology helping manage not only operational cost, but also the cost of construction. We are now not beholden to installing huge capacity panels when our real life loads never, or rarely, match the code calculated electrical loads.Stephen Kane on LinkedInSPANSPAN Tech PortalSPAN on YouTube

Happy New Year! I begin 2025 with a conversation I had with Randy Williams. Randy is well known for his Northern Pro Build blog that concentrates on applied building science, energy efficiency, and cold climate construction. He followed his brother into the building industry and quickly made a name for himself once he caught the building science bug. He was introduced to building science when he became an energy auditor during the economic downturn of 2009. He now describes himself as a building science nerd and supports himself by applying it as a contractor, energy auditor, and regular contributor to Fine Homebuilding, Journal of Light Construction, and Green Building Advisor. For me, it was really fun to have this conversation with Randy, building science nerd to nerd. Our time together flew by because we were just talking about our shared passion. Thanks much for your continued support and likes. Randy Williams on LinkedIn Norther Built Pro - A Cold Climate Construction and Energy Blog Randy Williams on Fine Homebuilding