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The Building Science Podcast

Author: Positive Energy

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If you're a human being and you live indoors, this podcast is more relevant to your life than you probably ever knew. Exploring the ways building science helps humans thrive in the built environment.
132 Episodes
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Who knew that an indoor pickleball facility could become a touchstone for high performance construction based on passive house principles? The backstory here is worth unpacking as it relates to a powerful force that is not often discussed - money. Return on investment is the aim of the game in the realm of real estate investment and this fact typically filters out high performance passive buildings - but not this time, and it is important to understand why. Our guest today is adept in both the financial and the construction realms and has been able to make a solid case for the value of passive construction in his latest development. Beyond the financial angle, this project aim to showcase high quality construction while also fostering community through sport. Plus with the heat and humidity of the Texas summers playing sports indoors makes it far more accessible to people. Join us in this thought-filled interview with David Komet of Urban Earth to hear about his journey and learn what he’s doing with his new pickleball facility as he prioritizes the health of the community, the local environment, and the planet. David KometDavid's professional career began with the Medical Center Guesthouse of America, developing interim stay facilities for patients and their families in major medical centers. From there he went on to be General Manager of Murdock Pharmaceuticals, a division of Nature's Way. His business experiences soon led him to the public capital markets and positions with Prudential Securities and Komet Asset Management managing private pools focused on long/short equity, direct lending and equity real estate investments. His current active projects reflect his deep interest in the sustainability conversation for the built environment, including age in place housing , commercial buildings and controlled environment agriculture.TeamHosted by Kristof IrwinEdited by Nico MignardiProduced by M. Walker
At a fundamental level, passive house practitioners are engaged in a rebellion against poor quality design and construction. It’s becoming quite clear that this rebellion has legs and will endure. Given this, a question worth unpacking is whether the durability of the passive house movement is emerging as an architectural style. What are the defining principles behind architectural aesthetic decisions in the context of high performance homes and buildings?  What will the history books say about our little rebellion in the years to come? Join us in this rich and thoughtful discussion with two powerful voices at the top of their game in the passive house realm.Tessa BradleyTessa is an optimist. She’s also tenacious and dedicated to creating designs that are stunning and sustainable at once. She uses her powers for good: in Tessa’s vision of the future, architecture is a cohesive part of creating the good life for more people — she believes that excellent design can help make a joyful life. With a tireless enthusiasm for problem-solving and a drive to tackle the toughest challenges head-on, she approaches every project with a blend of spunk, poise, and nerdy, sciencey know-how.Tessa’s signature style merges elegant modernism and cutting-edge building science. She’s designed some of the most energy-efficient homes in the United States and has been featured in Dwell, The New York Times, The Seattle Times, Sunset Magazine, Design Boom, Houzz, and in books about sustainable design, prefab architecture, and Passive House homes. Graham IrwinGraham is the principal of Essential Habitat Architecture, a Northern California design firm focused on healthy, high performance, sustainable buildings built to Passive Building standards. He has a degree in physics, with additional studies in engineering and architecture, and an extensive background in software development. Since 2008, his firm has worked on numerous single-family, multi-family and commercial Passive House projects throughout California and the US, including the first certified Passive House in California, the first certified Passive House retrofit in the US, and the first certified multi-family Passive House in the US. He is a licensed architect and licensed general contractor in the state of California.TeamHosted by Kristof IrwinEdited by Nico MignardiProduced by M. Walker
Big news! The Humid Climate Conference is coming back to ATX and it’s time for some appropriate FOMO. We’re just two weeks out. You will be so glad you made the decision to come to HCC in ATX. Both the technical knowledge and perspectives you’ll hear, as well as the realization and experience of the power, vitality and unstoppability of the growing community of folks in the AEC that are stepping up to move our industry and our society forward. The theme for HCC’24 is Transitions. The  work we do in the world as architects, developers, builders, trades, and even owners is important and it is also going through a series of transitions that together represent an altogether new way of delivering buildings to clients and communities. The Energy Transition, the refrigerant transition, the transition to lower carbon designs, both embodied and operational, are all “in play” right now. Now is the time to learn about them from visionary thought leaders and boots on the ground who are both showcasing these transitions and helping make them happen. Here’s the HCC website and here’s the link to buy tickets. Code to get $50 off is shared on the podcast!TeamHosted by Kristof IrwinEdited by Nico MignardiProduced by M. Walker
Ultrasonics Comes to Market

Ultrasonics Comes to Market

2024-04-2201:06:59

Today’s episode opens up the system of systems that delivers the materials, equipment and tools we use to deliver high quality homes and buildings to ourselves. The focus is on an novel ultrasonic leak detection system. This is potentially game-changing technology that impacts the ability to confidently deliver Passive House quality air control layers. Along the way you’ll learn about the importance of the air barrier and get a glimpse of the vastness of the AEC. This is an expansive episode that covers the human side of what it will take to get us from high quality designs to high performance finished projects - and ultimately to high quality lived experiences for occupants and owners.If you appreciate the ideas you hear on our podcast, Humid Climate Conference is the conference and the community you’re looking for.Bernard HornungHead of Built Environment, Coltraco Ultrasonics Limited a technology firm in the UK.Coltraco is manufacturer of a novel and powerful ultrasonic leak detection system.An example of the types of innovative and trailblazing materials equip and tools that Source2050 is brining to the market. Major Bernard Hornung was educated at Ampleforth College and at The RoyalMilitary Academy Sandhurst. He served 15 years in the Irish Guards, firstly as a Platoon Commander in the Battalion and secondly at the Infantry Junior Leaders Battalion. Bernard is fluent in Spanish and in Portuguese Bernard joined Coltraco Ultrasonics In May of 2020 (a good time to switch career focus to air quality and air barriers) as Head of the Built Environment at Coltraco.John KnappCo-founder of Source2050.Source2050 is the first mission-driven, curated marketplace of energy efficient and highperformance building products that lets builders find and purchase the best solutions for their projects. As you’ll hear he’s a force of nature who has done a lot, and played a varied of roles during his time on the planet.TeamHosted by Kristof IrwinEdited by Nico MignardiProduced by M. Walker
Next Level Leverage

Next Level Leverage

2024-04-1058:50

What if it’s true that “We can not solve our problems using the same level of thinking that created them”? - Attributed to Albert EinsteinCould it be that our building science understanding is limited? Could it be that even the clarity of understanding we gain by viewing homes and buildings as a systems of systems, assemblies, materials and products interacting according to the laws of science and nature - is necessary but not sufficient to cause us to build that way? Building science is a necessary understanding but it is proving insufficient to cause the change we want at the pace we need. What do we need to add to the building-as-a-system perspective? What will it take to get past Knowing How to get us to Actually Doing what it takes to design and build for the outcomes we need? Using that concept as a lens, this episode seeks to expand the building-as-a-systems view into the society-as-a-system view in order to find ways to allow the power of building science to have proper impact in society.  Anyone working in the AEC knows that the barriers to change are solid and weighty. This is what motivates our search for Leverage. Leverage is a force multiplier. Leverage creates a large powerful force using a smaller force. We need leverage to multiply the force we can exert to cause change to happen in the AEC. Following the insights from Donella Meadows(2), we focus on the concept of Leverage Points - those “places within a complex system where a small change in one area can have pervasive positive impacts”. What we will discover is that according to Donella our mental models of the world, our industry, and our role in it - our deeply held, often unexamined, paradigms, are points of power that bring leverage. Please join us for this rich and thoughtful exploration to find sufficiency. What will it actually take to bring the future we want into the present we have. Bring your caring hearts and curious minds and let’s have some fun!Reference: Donella Meadows, Thinking in Systems: A PrimerBSPS, SIGN UP PAGE TO GET ON OUR MAILING LIST, WE NEVER SHARE IT. https://positiveenergy.pro/the-building-science-philosophical-societyDONELLA MEADOWS BOOKCHAPTER 6 https://donellameadows.org/wp-content/userfiles/Leverage_Points.pdfWiki on Donella Meadowshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donella_MeadowsDonella Meadows Project - Academy for Changehttps://donellameadows.org/Check out the Systems Thinking Resources page!https://donellameadows.org/systems-thinking-resources/Book: Thinking in Systemshttps://donellameadows.org/systems-thinking-book-sale/TeamHosted by Kristof IrwinEdited by Nico MignardiProduced by M. Walker
Houses are Made of Stories

Houses are Made of Stories

2024-03-2601:17:04

Josh SalingerJoshua Salinger is CEO and Founder of Birdsmouth Design Build, a residential Design Build company located in Portland OR. In 1999 Josh graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a double major in Zoology and Conservation. In 2007 he started Birdsmouth Design Build with the goal of designing and building beautiful, high performing homes that transform and improve the built environment.Josh has received certifications from Earth Advantage’s Sustainable Homes Professional course, and is an early graduate of the Passive House Builders Training program administered by PHIUS and is an accredited EEBA Zero Energy Home Professional. He has been on the board of Passive House Northwest since 2016 and also sits on the Technical committee of Zero Energy Ready Oregon. He is currently developing the curriculum in concert with Earth Advantage for the Sustainable Homes Professional Remote Learning & Accreditation Program. He lives in the Mt. Tabor neighborhood of Portland with his wife and two children and enjoys playing guitar, yoga, cooking, bemoaning the inefficiency of his house, and making the world’s best cup of coffee.TeamHosted by Kristof IrwinEdited by Nico MignardiProduced by M. Walker
Luke LeungLuke is a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Fellow; He is also a Centennial Fellow from The Pennsylvania State University Architectural Engineering Department; Board of Directors for USGBC (United State Green Building Council), Illinois; Chairman of the ASHRAE (American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning) Committee on “Tall Buildings”; Chairman of the Building Pressure Committee, Chicago Committee on High Rise Buildings; Sustainable Committee with Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat; Part Time Professor at IIT;  Member of the Chicago Sister Cities Program with China; MBA from University of Chicago, MS and BAE from Architectural Engineering at Penn State University.Luke Leung is the Director of the Sustainability Engineering Studio for Skidmore, Owings and Merrill LLP. He is the incoming Chair of ASHRAE Environmental Health Committee; Team leader for ASHRAE Epidemic Task Force, Commercial Buildings; Group Leader for LCA and Embodied Carbon, ASHRAE Decarbonization Task Force; National Renewable Energy Laboratory IN2 Incubator Industry Advisor; BOMA Toronto, Health Committee Co-Chair. His work includes Burj Khalifa, the world’s current tallest man-made structure; Multiple times “Excellence in Engineering” award from the American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE); Selected projects also include Pertamina Tower (Net Zero Supertall), General Motors Global Headquarters, XiongAn Net Zero Development, Beijing Finance Street, Embassy of Ottawa in Canada, Embassy in Beijing, Lakeside – 55 million sqft low energy development, a LEED Platinum building with the first large scale horizontal wind turbine in the city of Chicago; etc., and has served as a member of the editorial team for the CTBUH guide Natural Ventilation in High-Rise Office Buildings, ASHRAE “Design Guide for Tall, Supertall, Megatall Building Systems”, among other publications.TeamHosted by Kristof IrwinProduced by M. WalkerEdited by Nico Mignardi
Wood is Good?

Wood is Good?

2024-03-0101:25:27

Chris MagwoodChris works with the Embodied Carbon Team in the Carbon Free Buildings Program. He brings focus on carbon-storing material and the residential sector to the team, using his experience with LCA studies and policy development to support the team’s work.Chris has been designing and building zero-carbon buildings throughout his 25-year career. From 2005 to 2018, he was a lead instructor in a hands-on design/build program at Endeavour Centre and was responsible for many zero-carbon, zero-toxin, and zero-waste buildings.In 2019, he helped found Builders for Climate Action and codeveloped the BEAM tool for measuring material emissions in residential buildings. He authored four major studies of embodied carbon in new construction for Canadian governments and helped Canadian cities develop an embodied carbon policy.Chris published eight books on green construction, most recently coauthoring Build Beyond Zero: New Ideas for Carbon Smart Architecture (Island Press, 2022) with Bruce King.Jacob RacusinJacob Deva Racusin is co-owner of New Frameworks Natural Building, LLC, offering services in green remodeling, new construction, consultation, and education featuring natural building technologies.  Through their work as a builder, consultant, and educator, Jacob is able to merge their passions for fine craft, ecological stewardship, relationship to place, and social justice.  Their goal in this work is to create a meaningful impact on the built environment in developing healthy, resilient communities.  Deva is an instructor at the Yestermorrow Design/Build School, where they are the former director of the Natural Building Intensive Program.  A BPI-certified contractor and Certified Passive House Consultant, Jacob has conducted field research on moisture and thermal performance of straw bale wall systems, which is featured in the book The Natural Building Companion which they co-authored with Ace McArleton (Chelsea Green Publishing, 2012). They have lectured and presented at universities, conferences, and other events across the Northeast.  Jacob lives with their family in Montgomery, VT, in a straw bale house on their permaculture-inspired homestead.TeamHosted by Kristof IrwinEdited by Nico MignardiProduced by M. Walker
Circles All the Way Down

Circles All the Way Down

2024-02-1301:17:04

How do we design and build affordable net-zero, carbon-negative homes? That important goal is the subject of today’s episode and is the focus of a multidisciplinary team that includes PNNL, Virginia Tech, and Green Canopy NODE. On the podcast today you’ll hear from Patti Gunderson with PNNL who is working with a talented team who are taking a thoughtful approach to this ambitious goal. One that focuses on modular design, carbon sequestering materials, thermal/energy efficiency, and a forward-looking circular approach that relies on cleverly designed, factory-built, bio-based materials right from the start. The outcome is a home that supports an owner’s right to repair (we need this with so many so-called durable products in our world today) and also allows the materials in the home to be disassembled and reused and the end of the home's lifecycle.Patricia GundersonPatti Gunderson joined PNNL in 2021 and supports several projects in both the Energy Policy and Economics and Buildings and Connected Systems Divisions. A particular strength is collaborating with manufacturers, designers, builders, and trades people to understand and overcome barriers to adoption of optimized building technologies.Patti most recently spent nearly six years at Home Innovation Research Labs where she proposed, designed, and led research projects to study constructability, functionality, energy efficiency and durability of buildings. Her background in building physics, engineering software tools, systems design, discipline coordination, project documentation, and construction administration provides valuable insight for research, analysis and client support.Prior to HI, Patti worked in the DC office of SmithGroup, an international AE firm, on numerous high-profile projects including embassies, medical centers, university law schools and the flagship Net Zero Brock Environmental Center for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. Patti is a big fan of collaboration and has benefitted from research partners and clients representing several national labs, the National Association of Home Builders, the Leading Builders of America, and numerous international manufacturers, as well as staff from DOE, FPL, HUD, and VA.TeamHosted by Kristof IrwinEdited by Nico MignardiProduced by M. Walker
You don’t have to be a building nerd or an engineer for a question like this to be relevant and important to consider. There are many reasons why AWHP systems make an attractive alternative to our batch of current “normal” heat pumps that rely on refrigerant for thermal distribution. Some of the reasons AWHP are appealing include: (1) reduced refrigerant volumes, thus reduced refrigerant leakage into the atmosphere; (2) larger selection of indoor unit options relative to refrigerant based systems; (3) the ability to support comfort via thermally active surfaces (aka radiant heating/cooling); (4) your home is better future-proofed and more technology-agnostic, and (5) these systems affordably unlock thermal storage (for thermal loads), which can provide energy resilience for their owners as well as dispatchable grid-level energy storage This episode is why you listen to the Building Science Podcast, somehow this multifaceted emerging story has still not hit the mainstream. 
We spend the vast majority of our time inside yet we actually know very little about what it means to live indoors. This is the case even though what happens indoors impacts us in nearly every way. Our comfort, health and overall well-being all are deeply impacted by what's in the air we breathe and what’s happening in and on the surfaces all around us. Enter Corbett and Grace Lunsford. Knowing that what we don’t know about our homes matters a lot, they took on the challenge of creating a TV show on home performance for mainstream audiences. Their show, now in it’s third season makes it clear that a “good home” is far more than what it looks like and how much it will sell for in the market. In the process, Corbett and Grace have become leading voices in the role of educating us about the many and hidden dimensions of home performance. Join us in this episode as they unpack the why, the what, and they created the Home Diagnosis TV show on PBS.Corbett LunsfordCorbett began working in the realm of home performance expertise in 2008 with Grace. He quickly discovered the challenges within the construction industry—its inherent messiness, time constraints on professionals, and inadequate compensation, all of which adversely affect homeowners throughout their lives. Their shared objective is clear: to present building performance in an accessible manner for both professionals and consumers, contributing to the improvement of structures globally.In 2009, Corbett initiated the Building Performance Workshop. He has also been prolific in sharing knowledge through more than 500 YouTube videos, 80 interviews for the Building Performance Podcast, and the authorship of the book "Home Performance Diagnostics: the Guide to Advanced Testing." Additionally, he developed the APT Reports software tool.Not bound by conventional expectations, Corbett and Grace designed and constructed the world's highest performance tiny house on wheels, the #TinyLab, in 2016. They toured the U.S. and settled in Atlanta, Georgia, creating the groundbreaking TV series "Home Diagnosis," the first of its kind on public television across the U.S.Grace LunsfordGrace Lunsford is the powerhouse behind The Building Performance Workshop’s videos and the Home Diagnosis TV series. She started the 'Home Performance' YouTube channel, and has produced over 500 videos to date, gaining 4 million views and 23k subscribers. Grace is the creator, co-host, and Executive Producer of 'Home Diagnosis', the first-ever TV series about measured home performance, which has aired on over 60% of the PBS stations across the U.S. Her short films and feature film, The Other One, have won awards at film festivals, and as a Hewlett-Packard sponsored artist, she presented workshops on her work methods at both Sundance and Cannes.She founded the media firm Sterling Rock Productions because the media she wanted to see was not being made.  She has served on the Boards of Directors of the Screen Actors Guild Midwest and the Illinois Production Alliance (which lobbies for tax incentives in the film industry), where she spearheaded an initiative to bring the production of major motion pictures and television shows to Chicago. She also founded the 501c3 Chicago Acting in Film Meetup, a professional support group of over 150 screen actors.Grace's career in film and television and voiceover continues in Atlanta, GA, where she's represented by Stewart Talent.TeamHosted by Kristof IrwinEdited by Nico MignardiProduced by M. Walker
Moving heat with a heat pump is an unsung superhero in the global energy transition. Chances are nearly 100% that you’re using a heat pump right now - to heat or cool yourself, refrigerate your food, or keep your car comfortable while you drive. The vapor compression process may be the thermodynamic engine of a heat pump, but where the rubber meets the road is the heat exchanger, aka “the coil”. Getting heat exchanger coils right is a balancing act. On one hand we want the coils wall material to be as thin as possible so they move heat efficiently, on the other hand we don’t want the working fluid, typically a high GWP refrigerant, to leak out into the sky. This is a costly hassle for us as well as a tragic outcome for the atmosphere. This is the backdrop for today’s conversation with Todd DeMonte on coils, coil failures, and the future of refrigerant based heat ex. Todd has been one of many smart folks around the world working to help society move past the vexing issue of formicary corrosion. Enjoy the feast of ideas in this episode!
Healthy Home Revolution

Healthy Home Revolution

2023-12-0101:03:46

As a society we are learning, slowly but surely, how to design and build healthy indoor spaces for ourselves and our loved ones. Seeing the need to both guide and accelerate this learning process, Paula Baker LaPorte and her wingman John Banta and Erica Elliot MD dedicated themselves to write a book. This happened 35 years ago with the 1st Edition of Prescriptions for a Healthy Homes, last year (in 2022) the 4th Edition was published and it is a richly updated treasure trove of motivation, guidance and actionable information that we all need to know more about. What we need now is a step change of sorts in the way society thinks about and delivers housing to itself. We need a Healthy Home Revolution.With that in mind, Kristof sat down with Paula to have a conversation about her journey exploring and understanding the connection between the built environment and our health. After hearing her stories and absorbing the understanding and knowledge in her book, it is clear that homes can be so much more than we currently ask them to be. Homes are more than a visual-spatial-economic situation, more than a place to hold ourselves, our families and our stuff, more than an exercise in energy efficiency and resource use; The places we live are in truth highly immersive and tactile experiences for our bodies and minds, and profoundly impactful opportunities to promote our health and the health of the planet.
Designing and building a sustainable passive house is a powerful moment for all involved - the client, the architect, and the planet. For the owners the process is deeply personal and emotional, with layers of financial impacts and the significant time investment involved. For architects the key is to talk in a way that clients can hear them, and listen in a way that they can hear their clients*. For both the architect and the client the first few conversations set the stage for what comes next. Join us in this interview with Graham Irwin of Essential Habitat where we unpack the seemingly simple question: How does effective communication between the client and the architect happen? The answers may surprise you.  “Designing a home is an incredible opportunity, let’s ensure the results are extraordinary”-Graham Irwin, Essential Habitat*with respect and appreciation to the amazing parenting book
Stated another way: Why is it that some firms produce a consistent stream of high-performing buildings, while others have trouble crafting a single project that moves beyond traditional practice? The answer is Practice; the environment and practices within which each particular firm carries out or exercises its professional role in the society. Join us in this episode as Corey and Kristof enjoy a thoughtful and lively discussion of architectural practice along the dimensions of Vision, Culture, Process and Knowledge. This is one for all of you out there that recognize the power of architecture and want to better understand how to unleash its positive impact into the world. 
Filter Feast Part 2

Filter Feast Part 2

2023-11-0754:44

Topics include the basics of particulate capture, the tradeoffs between filtration efficiency, clean air delivery rate, and energy use, filter media types, and electret degradation.  If you want to learn about the role of filtration in delivering clean indoor air for your self, or if your role in society has agency in making sure your clients are breathing healthy air, you will appreciate what you learn here. Mark is a filter nerd with the ability to break things down and communicate clearly.
Filter Feast Part 1

Filter Feast Part 1

2023-10-1854:44

Topics include the basics of particulate capture, the tradeoffs between filtration efficiency, clean air delivery rate, and energy use, filter media types, and electret degradation.  If you want to learn about the role of filtration in delivering clean indoor air for your self, or if your role in society has agency in making sure your clients are breathing healthy air, you will appreciate what you learn here. Mark is a filter nerd with the ability to break things down and communicate clearly.
The 2020’s have so far been a decade of abundance and progress for society’s awareness and understanding of Indoor Air Quality (IAQ). Beyond and before the pandemic put IAQ on everyone's mind, researchers have been enjoying well funded support from various organizations, both public and private, to better understand the impacts of indoor air on our health and well being. Plus cutting edge technologies from novel mass spectrometers to real-time PCR and next-generation DNA sequencing are both expanding and accelerating our understanding of the richness, diversity and significance of indoor air quality in our lives. Join us for this engaging and somewhat nerdy discussion with Dr Pawel Misztal, an assistant professor from the University of Texas at Austin’s Civil Architectural and Environmental Engineering department. In this conversation Pawel unpacks the story of indoor air emissions and their impact on us. The emissions come from many sources including what we do, who we are (our bodies are highly active emission sources), and the microbes that live on every surface indoors.———-TeamHosted by Kristof IrwinProduced by M. WalkerEdited by Nico Mignardi
There are few roles in society with the broad and lasting power of Architecture. Architecture both reflects and directs the story of a civilization and its cultural milieu by signaling what’s important, who has value, and how society functions. Recognition of the power of architecture in society sets the stage for today’s discussion with Corey Squire, a skilled sustainability consultant, a member of the AIA’s COTE Advisory Group, and an architectural optimist if there ever was one. Join us in this episode as Corey and Kristof start to digest the feast of ideas in Corey’s new book that will be coming out in the Fall of 2023.Corey’s book People, Planet, Design is somewhat of a “How To” response to Carl Elephante’s declaration that “Architects don’t need to seek relevance, only seize it” (1). As you'll hear in this episode, in Corey’s view, seizing relevance happens by bringing about a new vision of design excellence. A vision that heals the schism between architecture and the goals and concerns of society. This happens first by shifting the mindset about the purpose of architecture, and then practically recognizing architecture at a crossroads and moving in a direction. One that unlocks the power of architecture, the promise it holds, and needs to hold, in the future that’s arriving now.
In a Seattle neighborhood, close to public transportation, Dan Whitmore and his associates are putting the money where their ideals are and making affordable housing happen.  Not just affordable but high-performance Passive House affordable per the Phius standards, plus they have an onsite PV array that unlocks the benefits of onsite power generation. This episode is an interview with Dan as he unpacks the topic and asks Why is this compelling social issue considered to be only one that can be addressed by governmental programs and non-profits? The need for affordable housing is indeed a compelling societal issue with wide-ranging impacts. In many cities in the US the cost of housing is rising faster than incomes and there is a growing racial homeownership gap. The lack of housing creates a lot burden, pain and turmoil in, and can have lasting impacts on people's lives, particularly children. On the flip side, studies have shown that investing in affordable housing can have a significant positive economic multiplier effect. So why is there not more affordable housing happening in the US? Perhaps the answer lies in investors taking this question seriously.__________Dan WhitmoreDan Whitmore has worked in the construction industry since 1987 as a carpenter, general contractor, builder, and consultant with additional stints as a designer and FEMA Inspector.His introduction to high-performance building came at an impressionable age when, in 1977, his family built an award-winning Solar Home in Oklahoma where he grew up. As designer, builder, and Certified Passive House Consultant (CPHC®), he completed one of the first passive houses in Washington State in 2010. Since then, he has consulted on and/or built more than 20 passive house projects.He now divides his time between Indicator, his new energy, durability, and constructability consulting firm, and Cascade Built, a builder/developer of sustainable multifamily projects in Seattle. Whitmore is also an Instructor at Phius, co-developer of the Phius Certified Builder Training program, Council Chair of the Phius Alliance, and a founding board member of Passive House Northwest.___________TeamHosted by Kristof IrwinEdited by Nico MignardiProduced by M. Walker
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Comments (2)

Andrew Self

Revisited this for probably the 3rd time, I'm a gc on a remodel in Corpus Christi. The project is a 3k sq ft single story brick with gas furnaces and water heaters. It was built in the 60s. I've seen issues with spray foam in my area only in retrofitted situations. I wish we had effective alternatives. Is spraying ceiling joist bays practical?

Oct 1st
Reply

Andrew Clay Self

how would I bring make up air in to a beach facing home in Port Aransas TX? thank you love the podcast

Sep 17th
Reply