Building HVAC Science

What's it like to build a tech product from the ground up? How do you validate that a market exists? What tools can you use to gain confidence that you are on the right track? In this week's podcast, Bill Spohn is joined by John Hoehn, CEO of Duckling. Duckling's mission is to help contractors help their customers on their journey to electrifying their homes. John and his co-founder, Sudeep Yegnashankaran have deep backgrounds in software development. They have been working on Duckling over the last two years and are now recruiting their first customers. Bill is honored to join their team as an advisor alongside Elliott Trice, who brings decades of experience in tech product development and design. Keep your eyes open and ears peeled for what Duckling hatches in the coming year! In full disclosure, Bill has a small financial interest in Duckling. Duckling website: www.getduckling.com Results from the contractor survey conducted in late 2022: https://bit.ly/HVAC-electrify Duckling one-page overview: https://bit.ly/Duckling-1-23 Are you a contractor interested in being a design partner with Duckling? Fill out this quick form: https://bit.ly/Duckling-EAP Electrification Panel Discussion at the 2023 HVAC School Symposium featuring Kimberly Llewellyn, Jim Bergmann and Bill Spohn* https://hvacrschool.com/events/4th-annual-hvac-r-training-symposium/electrification-panel/ * a small fee will gain you access to all recorded sessions from the Symposium for a limited time. Learn more about Steve Blank, who guidance John mentions in the podcast: https://steveblank.com/books-for-startups/ This episode was recorded in February 2023.

What do we do with our time? What did I do with my time in the last week? The Bangles said it best: … Time, time, time See what's become of me While I looked around for my possibilities In this episode, Bill is joined by Eric Kaiser where they share observations on products and events and the interesting people they engaged with during their 4 day excursion to the AHR Expo 2023. The AHR Expo: https://www.ahrexpo.com/ SUPCO TradeFox site and application: https://www.supcotradefox.com/ TruTech TradeFox page: https://www.trutechtools.com/supco-trade-fox.html Diversitech TradeInvent application: https://info.diversitech.com/tradeinvent-by-diversitech ASHRAE Standard 221: https://hvactoday.com/ashrae-221/ REFCO Inverter Checker: https://www.trutechtools.com/Refco-Inverter-Check-Kit-wData-Flow-Monitor_p_4930.html REFCO Gobi Condensate pump: https://www.trutechtools.com/Refco-Gobi REFCO Combi Condensate Pump: https://www.trutechtools.com/Refco-COMBI-Condensate-Removal-Pump-Universal-Voltage REFCO Karoo Condensate pump https://www.trutechtools.com/Refco-Karoo JB Climate Class probes: https://www.trutechtools.com/jb-climate-class.html Sauermann Combustion Analyzers: https://www.trutechtools.com/sauermann-combustion-analysis.html This episode was recorded in February 2023.

In this episode, Bill explains some of the activities that have kept him busy in the first few weeks of 2023. The HVACR Symposium: https://hvacrschool.com/events/4th-annual-hvac-r-training-symposium/ The AHR Expo: https://www.ahrexpo.com/ Installing a new operating system at TruTech Tools: EOS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dpXL2SGfkBc https://www.eosworldwide.com/ This episode was recorded in February 2023.

Today, I feel very in tune with this podcast's stated mission: Building HVAC Science covers a broad array of topics in building science and HVAC diagnostics, as well as human comfort, health, and safety….; this show will take a deep dive into all things that relate to buildings and people in the built environment. I was very fortunate to interview Dr. Joe Allen, an esteemed Indoor Air Quality researcher, presenter, and author, as we covered what Joe has observed and educated us on regarding the collision between two disciplines: building science and health science. Joe shares his observations, strategies, and tactics that are moving us toward an era where buildings go beyond doing no harm to occupants but focus more on maximizing the benefit to the occupants. Joe joins the growing list of people on this podcast who talk (all or in part) about indoor air quality or healthy buildings: Dr. Stephanie Taylor, Dr. Bill Bahnfelth, Joe Medosch, Larry Zarker, Nate Adams, Jason Earle, Cheryl Cieko, Dawn Oggier, Brian Kennihan, Ereland Bolle, Casey Grey, Ray Wu, Ben Reed, Kaleb Saleeby, Steve Pascuzzo, Big Clive, Ty Newell, Dick Kornbluth, and Jaques Touillion, amongst others. Joe Allen's links: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephgardnerallen/ Harvard Faculty page: https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/joseph-allen/healthy-buildings/ Kicking off the first White House Summitt on Indoor air quality in Nov 2022: https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/healthybuildings/2022/10/13/dr-joseph-allen-presenting-at-white-house-summit-on-indoor-air-quality/ Healthy Buildings book on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/Healthy-Buildings-Indoor-Performance-Productivity/dp/0674237978 9 Foundations website:https://9foundations.com/ Follow Joe on Twitter: https://twitter.com/j_g_allen Tune up buildings article:https://deohs.washington.edu/hsm-blog/how-giving-our-buildings-tune-can-make-us-healthier 36 Tips for a healthier home: https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/features/36-expert-tips-for-a-healthier-home/ This episode was recorded in January 2023.

For several years, in southern Maine, a small group of building professionals have been getting together monthly to discuss building science. Many topics are brought up for discussion: high performance windows, venting cathedral ceilings, moisture migration in wall assemblies, slab on grade details, etc. The conversation is informal and roams a bit. At one of those meetings, one of my guests today, builder, Dan Kolbert, expressed frustration with the status quo, and even more frustration with the various rating systems that had him jumping through many hoops to prove that his work was in fact "green" and energy efficient. Some find these systems costly in time and money and doing little to advance the project. Rather they are simply certifying them. So Dan simply stated, "I just want to build a pretty good house." That's where this story begins…. https://www.finehomebuilding.com/project-guides/insulation/is-a-pretty-good-house-good-enough https://www.thebsandbeershow.com/ https://www.prettygoodhouse.org/ https://www.prettygoodhouse.org/pgh-20 This episode was recorded in December 2022.

Today's guest, Anna Desimone has done an awesome job compiling resources for consumers to learn about factors, features and benefits of building an Energy Efficient home. Anna is author of Live in a Home that Pays You Back--A Complete Guide to Net Zero and Energy Efficient Homes, featuring national building programs in the U.S. and Canada. This is not a technical deep dive, but more of a consumer reference for understanding the blueprints of Building Envelope, Thermal enclosure, HVAC, Lighting and appliances, water management and more., Winner of three national book awards, Anna lights the way for understanding the home buying and financing process. She has written more than 40 professional handbooks on the topic of fair and responsible lending, and often serves as industry expert on news media. Links for more about Anna and her books: https://annadesimone.net/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/annadesimone/ https://www.amazon.com/Live-Home-that-Pays-Back/dp/1039123481 https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Live_in_a_Home_that_Pays_You_Back_A_Complete_Guide This episode was recorded in December 2022.

My three esteemed guests/amigos shed some light on common misconceptions in the HVACR industry. Catch the video version here: https://youtu.be/ZL5-sEOJj0c We talk about fun topics like: -Heatpumps are only for the south of the Mason-Dixon line -A1 refrigerants are Non-Flammable -A2L refrigerants are Flammable -R32 is a replacement for R410a -Reclaimed refrigerant does not have any value -SEER2 has taken us by surprise -Equipment brand names determine the quality, performance and longevity of service Link to the Esco Group website: https://www.escogroup.org/ Link to the National HVACR Education Conference: https://www.escogroup.org/hvac/nhetc/default.aspx Their video channel: https://www.youtube.com/@escogroup Email Addresses for our guests: Clifton Beck: cbeck@escogroup.orgJason Obrzut: jobrzut@escogroup.org Eugene Silberstein: eugene@escogroup.org The AHR Expo: https://www.ahrexpo.com/ This episode was recorded in December 2022.

Listen in as Phil Zito describes the journey he has taken from being bored, to blogging to building a business that provides top notch online training and workforce development programs. Formerly known as Building Automation Monthly, a newsletter and podcast in its early years, The Smart Buildings Academy has experienced rapid growth. As the SBA says on their website: "If you've been looking for a way to take yourself or your building automation team to the next level. Then you're in the right place. One of SBA's guiding principles is to "Focus on the customer's profit". Phil understands from personal experience the importance of focusing on training that not only develops BAS knowledge but also teaches how to "do" building automation in a way that is profitable and efficient. If you are a BAS professional looking to grow your skills or looking to enter the BAS field, you owe it to yourself to check out the SBA. Phil's LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phillipzito/ Smart Buildings Academy: website: https://www.smartbuildingsacademy.com/ Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/groups/buildingautomationmonthly LinkedIn group: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/3582469/ Oh, Phil also interviewed ME on his podcast recently:https://podcast.smartbuildingsacademy.com/387 This episode was recorded in December 2022.

I was thrilled to get the opportunity to interview Shawn McLaughlin, after having been impressed with the simplicity and value of using an Emporia Vue Energy Monitor for a year or so before I met him. Shawn shares with us his back story that led him from commodities trader to company builder: designer and manufacturer of a suite of powerful, yet inexpensive products used for smart home energy management. Learn some new acronyms that you will be hearing more of in the future, such as disaggregation, FERC and DERM as we hear of his vision for building the world's largest virtual power plant (VPP) and his progress along that goal. Shawn is a man of quiet confidence coupled with courage and enthusiasm. I think you will enjoy this conversation. His LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shawn-mclaughlin-86249215b/ Emporia Energy website: https://www.emporiaenergy.com/ This episode was recorded in November 2022.

I met Griffin at the http://www.HabitatX.com conference several years ago and found him to be thoughtful, insightful and a quiet but powerful champion of the principles he believes in. In todays' podcast we discuss electrification in Alaska, the deep retrofit work Griffin is doing on his own home and several other topics. Read one of Griffin's posts from the HabitatX Journal: https://medium.com/habitat-x-journal/thats-building-performance-bfdb2646ba53 From his LinkedIn Bio: Affordable housing executive and energy transition observer with extensive experience on the Arctic Slope of Alaska. His LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/griffin-forster-480a1b1a/ This episode was recorded in October 2022.