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Building HVAC Science — Education
Building HVAC Science

Exploring the science, people, and practices shaping better buildings.

The Building HVAC Science Podcast dives into both the technical and human sides of heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and building performance. Hosted by industry veteran Bill Spohn, CEO and co-owner of TruTech Tools, the show reflects Bill’s passion for advancing the HVAC craft through practical knowledge, curiosity, and conversation.

With more than 250 episodes and counting, the podcast features discussions with contractors, distributors, manufacturers, educators, and thought leaders from across the HVAC and building science communities. Each episode blends field experience with broader industry perspective, helping professionals stay ahead of trends, sharpen their skills, and build stronger businesses.

Topics include:

New tools, technologies, and field practices
Real-world case studies and lessons learned
Building performance, comfort, and indoor air quality
Industry innovation, workforce development, and the human side of the trades

Whether you’re a technician in the field, a business owner, a manufacturer, or simply curious about how buildings breathe and perform, Building HVAC Science connects you with the ideas and voices moving the industry forward.

Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

This show is a production of TruTech Tools®, LTD.

Latest Episodes:

EP140 Thoughts on the push for heat pumps and the accompanying funding for electrification With Cindy Zeis (October 2023) Nov 03, 2023

Show notes

Eric and I had a great conversation with Cindy Zeis of Performance Systems Development, https://psdconsulting.com/, a company with the tag line: "Moving Energy Efficiency Forward" and description. We combine building science with technology to help utility companies, program implementers, and building performance professionals achieve energy savings.

This whole conversation was spurred by a post that Cindy made on Linked in about electrification programs and the need to get our priorities straight.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/electrification-programs-getting-our-priorities-straight-cindy-zeis

I was especially attracted to this paragraph in Cindy's post:

In light of recent developments, such as the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and other funding opportunities that promote installation of heat pumps and other energy efficient technologies, it's essential to emphasize the importance of considering a building as a holistic system. It's important to highlight the critical role of the building envelope and energy efficient components, such as lighting, in minimizing energy loads before sizing mechanical equipment. It's also important to incorporate third-party verification for both building and mechanical system performance."

This episode was recorded in October 2023.

EP139 Creating a culture of #betterhvac with Tim DeStasio (August 2023) Oct 27, 2023

Show notes

DEFINITION of Culture

Learned patterns of perception, values, and behaviors, SHARED by a group of people that are dynamic and heterogeneous. (diverse in character or content.)

I like having guests on the podcast share their journeys and important lessons learned along the way.

We explore these topics and more with Tim Destasio as he explains how he learned what he knows today.

From his start in industrial, ending up in residential and now combining building science, Tim shares with us his lessons learned and his perspectives on #betterHVAC

Tim is very active on LinkedIn, so follow him here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tim-de-stasio-0618824a/

We spoke of "Corbett's list", well here it is: https://homediagnosis.tv/hvac-installers

Look for his HVAC course on Udemy: https://www.udemy.com/user/tim-r-de-stasio/

His YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCn6U4wQe3DPYFFp4kiy_z0w

This episode was recorded in August 2023.

EP138 Tying it all together - The Whos Whats and Whys of Ty Branaman (August 2023) Oct 20, 2023

Show notes

We had a great time interviewing the man behind the brand "Love2HVAC".

Ty Branaman's passion for all things HVAC education certainly comes through in every conversation and interaction we've had.

Ty has a lot of patience (and a small pointer finger thing) that help explain and highlight whatever topic is teaching at the moment.

He stresses the use of tools, measurements and your brain to help teach the invisible.

He encourages new instructors to "go for it" and be willing to make mistakes, but observant to learn from them.

He firmly believes teaching helps you be a better person, a better manager. You will learn more when you teach. (I whole heartedly agree, there!)

You will often find Ty on other podcasts, live streams, in conferences and at the HVACR School Symposium. This year he gave a great session on Educating and Training Gen Z https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHs9AD6wRz8

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@love2hvac

His website: https://www.love2hvac.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ty.branaman/

Twitter (X): https://twitter.com/love2hvac

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/love2hvac/?hl=en

Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ty-branaman-cmhe-07604a33/

This episode was recorded in August 2023.

EP137 Growing businesses need structure, EOS can provide it with Derek Pittak (September 2023) Oct 13, 2023

Show notes

I'm not exactly sure when I got introduced to the concepts of EOS, the Entrepreneurial Operating System.

It was likely during my 12 week "crash course" in business with Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business program or 10kSB (https://www.goldmansachs.com/citizenship/10000-small-businesses/US/ ) – probably one of the 145 people in my National Cohort #6 mentioned it.

I read the book Traction by Geno Wickman in 2017 and slowly started integrating the ideas into the way we run TruTech Tools.

In the spring of 2022, I re-read it and presented to our leadership team. We decided to go full bore and started the process of adopting EOS company wide in the summer of 2022.

On today's podcast I chat with our EOS implementer, Derek Pittak.

Derek shares the key components of EOS with us including dissecting issues, following processes and traction, the execution piece.

EOS has a lot of quick tidbits you can pick up. However, if this interest you, I suggest you get the book Traction and read it cover to cover or reach out to someone like Derek.

Derek's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/derek-pittak-4b2ba86a/

Derek's microsite: https://www.eosworldwide.com/derek-pittak

EOS Worldwide: https://www.eosworldwide.com/

This episode was recorded in September 2023.

EP136 Utilizing Smart Maintenance plans benefits your customers and your business with Josh Teekell (August 2023) Oct 06, 2023

Show notes

Eric and I had the pleasure of interviewing Josh Teekell, founder of SmartAC.com

Josh has envisioned, developed, and built a straightforward, EASY-to-install tech product that enables Smart Maintenance plans.

Josh describes the net result for HVAC and plumbing companies is for them to maximize their revenue by dramatically increasing their membership conversion rates, lowering customer attrition, and eliminating zero-fee truck rolls.

SmartAC.com is an air conditioning and heating (HVAC) health-monitoring platform that digitizes the experience of AC ownership, extends equipment life, and saves homeowners money by proactive notice of the need for HVAC maintenance, alerting users & service providers of a potential breakdown before it occurs.

The sensors monitor cooling and heating performance, airflow, air filter life, and drain lines to ensure the health of critical HVAC components.

SmartAC.com membership begins at just $10 per month. It includes a lifetime warranty on the hardware, daily system health checks, discounted air filters, active water leak monitoring, real-time chat with certified HVAC experts, and monthly system health reports.

10-minute set up, no tools, no wiring.

Josh's LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/jateekell/

https://www.smartac.com/technology

Learn more here where Ken Goodrich, Jim Bergmann and others tell you about the impact of this unique tech:

https://hvac.smartac.com/

This episode was recorded in August 2023.

EP135 Making Sustainable Building Mainstream Building With Robby Schwartz (August 2023) Sep 29, 2023

Show notes

Meet Robby Schwartz, founder of the BuildTank and the BuildTank Podcast who aims

Robby on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robby-schwarz-b17b956/

I have been engaged in Applied Building Science, Resiliency and Sustainability, energy efficiency, Codes etc. since the early 1990's. My experience is varied, including several years working as a commercial fisherman in Alaska, traveling the world, working in the construction trades, and then as a consultant with production and custom builders, code jurisdictions, private clients, and the Colorado Energy Office, amongst others. I started BUILDTank, inc. to be a practical building think tank whose mission is to use what we learn by applying building science in the field to affect meaningful change in the construction industry. To chase issues that hold the industry back and generate ideas and innovations that move sustainable building into mainstream building.

Podcast details: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/buildtank-buildcast/id1554383191

At BuildTank, a pragmatic building think tank, our mission is to use what we learn applying building science to affect meaningful change in the construction industry. The BUILDCast is the next step. Through conversations, we will learn something new from our guests' story that could be the catalyst to take sustainable buildings to mainstream building. We will concentrate on the "story". No two second intro, instead a deep dive into life experiences that create interesting lives and ultimately move our industry forward. Join me and learn something new from each conversation.

This episode was recorded in August 2023.

EP134 The Science of Air leading to Healthier Indoors with Alex DeGagne' (August 2023) Sep 22, 2023

Show notes

My guest today, Alex DeGagne', is one of those very interesting people I have met in my travels in the last few years.

Alex is CEO & owner of MINOTAIR, a manufacturing company currently based in Gatineau in southwestern, Quebec, Canada.

His main product is the Pentacare-V12, a compact, ultra efficient air exchanger that incorporates a HEPA filter, and uses a self-contained heat pump to control ventilation, temperature and humidity in a home.

In his words: "Our PentaCare Series is a product using cutting-edge technology to care of 5 things: Heating + Ventilation + Air filtration + Cooling + Dehumidification. HVAC-D

It's like 4-machines-in-1: 1- an Active Heat and Energy Recovery Ventilator with the highest SRE efficiency certified by the HVI for best comfort; 2-a Ducted Air Source Heat Pump; 3- a Dehumidifier; 4- a HEPA MERV 15 Medical-Grade Air Filtration device which can help greatly during wildfire smokes episodes."

Alex speaks to us about science, especially building science, home construction and indoor air quality as well as the practical aspects of manufacturing and distributing such an innovative product.

Alex on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-de-gagne-minotair/

His email: alex.degagne@minotair.com

Links mentioned in the podcast:

Minotair home page: https://www.minotair.com/home_us/

Ventilation info: https://www.minotair.com/ventilation-2/

Show info: https://www.minotair.com/visitus_us/

Where to buy: https://www.minotair.com/resellers-us/

Pentacare-V12: https://www.minotair.com/minotair-pentacare-v12_us/

Brochure: https://www.minotair.com/wp-content/uploads/MINOTAIR_PENTACARE_V12_BROCHURE_032019_EN_WEBs.pdf

Guide and Manual: https://www.minotair.com/wp-content/uploads/MINOTAIR%20-%20PENTACARE-V12%20-%20Manual%20-%20EN%20-%20Rev%20018B.pdf An overview of the ASHRAE 62.2 specification: https://www.energy.gov/eere/buildings/articles/ashrae-standard-622-ventilation-and-acceptable-indoor-air-quality-low-rise

Alex's LinkedIn

https://www.linkedin.com/in/alex-de-gagne-minotair/

This episode was recorded in August 2023.

EP133 Commissioning an HVAC System is hard- doing it with measureQuick is easier with Jim Bergmann (August 2023) Sep 15, 2023

Show notes

Eric Kaiser and I had the pleasure of interviewing the man, the myth, the legend (and our friend) Jim Bergmann in this episode.

As Jim's business has grown, there are a lot of new updates, activities and events happening and coming up soon. Go to the mQ site for more details, especially the resources page: https://measurequick.com/resources/

Some significant quotes and thoughts from the interview:

Changing the culture in a company is hard to do; it must start from the top
They don't make products like they used to, or is it you that hasn't kept up
Manufacturers have refined their designs; installation instructions have serious details that they assume all techs will follow.

NEWSFLASH: The measureQuick 2.5 Public Beta is available now with guided workflows!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AqSN23giepQ

Links mentioned in the interview:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jim-bergmann-2968178/

www.MeasureQuick.com

https://measurequick.com/electrification-an-open-letter/

https://nvlpubs.nist.gov/nistpubs/technicalnotes/nist.tn.1848.pdf

Podcast with Kevin Hart of Haven: EP111

https://buildinghvacscience.libsyn.com/ep111-putting-the-v-back-in-hvac-and-why-you-should-care-with-kevin-hart-march-2023

UPCOMING podcast (EP136) with Josh Teekell of www.SmartAC.com

https://www.heatpumpsummit.org/

This episode was recorded in August 2023.

EP132 The Heat Pump Summit with Brent Davidson (August 2023) Sep 08, 2023

Show notes

I've been meeting a lot of interesting people from the tech world in in the last year or so.

My new colleague at Duckling, John Hoehn, Shelby Breger at Conduit and most recently, Brent Davidson.

Brent has created the first US Heat Pump Summit coming up this November in Berkeley, CA- links below for details.

He defines success for the event as the attendees leaving with many new, meaningful connections. It is structured to have a contractor focus so attendees leave with tactical knowledge to begin using immediately.

In his words: "Everyone admitted to this conference is on the same team. Whether you got into this work for decarbonizing buildings or a good way to make a living, we all are here with the same goal - sell and successfully install more heat pumps."

The event is hosted in association with the Eneref Institute, and will feature expert-led training from a building science based approach, broad knowledge across topics including how heat pumps fit into a customer's home electrification journey, the future of the grid, and more.

You should attend if you work primarily in heat pumps or building electrification.

This summit's focus includes a few main areas: building science, smart tools, companies making heat pumps and building electrification hardware, software for sales and remote heat load estimation, companies connecting electrification customers with contractors, demand response tech, and HVAC pro's in the field.

There's a great list of featured speakers including my pals, Joe Medosch and Eric Kaiser. I'll also be there broadening my network of connections.

Head to the website, scroll to the bottom and join the Summit Community for:

Discounted tickets
Articles on new tech for contractors
Invites to Heat Pump Happy Hours
Summit updates

Link to the Heat Pump Summit:

https://www.heatpumpsummit.org/

Brent on LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/brentdavidson/

Email: Contact@heatpumpsummit.org

Research Institute we mention: www.Eneref.org

This episode was recorded in August 2023.

EP131 The responsible contractor in my backyard with Mat Stone (August 2023) Sep 01, 2023

Show notes

This episode started in 2018. I have had the notion for quite a while (since 2018) of the need for a responsible contractor network or RCN.

This came up when my widowed sister that lives many states away was having trouble with her HVAC system in her home. She asked who I might recommend. I had no immediate answer.

I created a few basic principles of conduct, process, and integrity for RCN.

I even bought a domain and mentioned the idea a few times (at the HVAC School Symposium) and received some decent response.

Then I fell into other rabbit holes.

Fast forward to 2023 and I came across a list put forth by Corbett Lunsford: https://homediagnosis.tv/hvac-installers

"The List is a voluntary, un-vetted directory of HVAC Installers across North America who will trust and follow, or even perform in-house, design calculations (Manual J, S, and D). These companies have self-selected, by affirming the following questions:

I understand that the first step in proper HVAC design is a Manual J (or equivalent) load calculation, targeting the 99% hottest and coldest design temperatures the home will be exposed to
I understand that in more airtight, insulated, and ventilated homes the load may prove to be between 1000-2500 sq ft per ton of cooling
If I follow the software-based design correctly, I understand that it is not my problem if the home is not as airtight as the builder or client told me it would be, and a simple blower door test can prove that any performance issues are the enclosure's fault rather than my HVAC installations"

Dang, he did it!

Then I scrolled through the list (now 51 strong) and saw someone in Pittsburgh where I live!

And that's how this episode all started.

Oh, and Mat has a very interesting backstory that I think you will enjoy.

Mat Stone Mat@home-mechanix.comwww.Home-Mechanix.com

This episode was recorded in August 2023.

PS we referred to Episode 21 with Ed Kisiel

Super tight houses using standard construction.

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