EP245 Retrofit the Future: Inside PHIUS’s New Revive Standard with Al Mitchell and Haley Harlow (October 2025)
Release Date: 11/21/2025
EP259 Donkey Wrangler to HVAC Whisperer: Brad Adcox on Fundamentals That Win (January 2026)
Building HVAC Science
Pithy quotes “Your product can be great, but if you’re hard to work with, nobody’s going to buy it.” “Take a deep breath, go back to the fundamentals, and ask: what’s the biggest value I can add today?” “You’re allowed to say, ‘I don’t know. I’ll figure it out for you.’ People respect that more than the runaround.” Brad Adcox joined the Building HVAC Science podcast with Bill and Eric and, within minutes, earned the unofficial title “donkey wrangler” after sharing a story about his donkey. The laughs kept coming, including a side quest into hobby-farm...
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EP258 Live From AHR 2026: Tools, Tactics, and Trade Stories From the Show Floor With the Team from TruTech (February 2026)
Building HVAC Science
“AHR isn’t just a product show, it’s where you see the future of the trade taking shape in real time.” “Training, technology, and community are finally moving at the same speed.” “Exhausting in the best possible way, that’s how you know it was a great show.” Fresh off the floor of AHR Expo 2026 in Las Vegas, the TruTech Tools team jumps on the mic to share firsthand impressions from one of the HVAC industry’s biggest gatherings. From Ginny’s perspective as a first-time attendee navigating miles of booths and crowds, to seasoned takes from Eric, Sue, Billy, and you, the...
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EP257 From Rockets to Heat Pumps: Shreyas Sudhakar on Scaling Quality HVAC (January 2026)
Building HVAC Science
Pithy quotes “We do our job well if the homeowner forgets about us, because the system just works.” “The bar is so low in some homes that doing a quality install can genuinely change someone’s life.” “The best way to learn is crawling in the crawl space behind a great technician and handing them tools.” Semi-famous quote that fits our theme “Stay hungry, stay foolish.” © Steve Jobs Shreyas Sudhakar joined the Building HVAC Science podcast to talk about his path from rocket propulsion engineering to building high-quality heat pump installs in California. Bill and...
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EP256 The Woodstock of HVAC: Why This Symposium Hits Different With the TruTech Team (January 2026)
Building HVAC Science
Episode quotes: “What you put into this, you get out of this in multiples.” “It’s not about sales. It’s about learning, relationships, and leaving your ego at the door.” “Use AI responsibly, but keep the humans involved. The humans are what keep it honest.” In this episode of the Building HVAC Science Podcast, Eric Kaiser, Bill, and the TruTech Tools crew (Billy Spohn, Ginny Hebert, and Josh Crawley) recap their trip to the 7th Annual HVACR Training Symposium in Ocoee, Florida. Josh and Ginny share first-timer impressions: early-morning booth setup, instant attendee engagement,...
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EP255 Beyond Manual J: The Heat Balance Future of Residential Load Calculations With Tony Amadio (December 2025)
Building HVAC Science
Notable quote from the episode: Make it as simple as possible, but not simpler. In this episode, Eric Kaiser sits down with mechanical engineer Tony Amadio, the founder of True Loads, to talk about what actually makes residential load calculations succeed or fail in the real world. Tony shares how his work is split between builders, architects, project managers, and HVAC contractors, and why the biggest early battle was simply getting people to trust results that pointed to smaller equipment. He explains how he quickly learned from feedback loops in production housing, including what happens...
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EP254 Mold, Moisture, and Missed Details: Lessons From the Building Science Trenches With Kohta Ueno (January 2026)
Building HVAC Science
QUOTES from the episode: “Most building failures aren’t mysterious. They’re just ignored fundamentals.” “If you demand museum-level humidity, you’re no longer building a house. You’re building a museum.” “Moisture meters don’t solve problems. They show you patterns. The thinking solves the problem.” In this episode of the Building HVAC Science Podcast, Eric Kaiser is joined by Kohta Ueno, principal and co-owner of Building Science Corporation, for a wide-ranging discussion on building failures, moisture, HVAC, and the practical realities of diagnosing real-world...
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EP253 The HVAC Trust Gap, and the Directory Built to Close It With Kevin R. Hart, Huff Hoffmaster & Darren Reuter (January 2026)
Building HVAC Science
Quotes from the episode: “Better isn’t a goal, it’s a direction.” “HVAC can feel like a house of mirrors for homeowners, and the cure is transparency plus measured results.” “We’re not trying to find the perfect contractor. We’re trying to find the contractor who keeps learning and won’t get complacent.” In this episode of the Building HVAC Science Podcast, Eric Kaiser flips the script and brings Bill Spohn on as a guest alongside Kevin Hart from Better HVAC and Darren Reuter and Huff Hoffmaster from Rewiring America. The group lays out a shared problem:...
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EP252 The Perfection Trap in the Trades With Eric Kaiser (December 2025)
Building HVAC Science
Quotes from the episode: “Good enough isn’t a fixed point. It’s a moving target shaped by goals, expectations, and consequences.” “Perfection can push us forward, but it can also quietly pull us off track.” “If I delivered what I promised, in the time promised, using the resources promised, that is good enough for me.” “The real skill is knowing when extra effort adds value and when it just adds ego.” In this solo monologue episode, Eric Kaiser explores a deceptively simple question: Can good enough be perfect? Drawing on years of experience in the trades, Eric...
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EP251 Innovation in HVAC: The Quiet Shifts That Matter Most With Bill Spohn (December 2025)
Building HVAC Science
Quotes from the Episode: “Innovation in HVAC isn’t one big breakthrough. It’s a series of quieter shifts that slowly change how we work.” “The future of HVAC depends on the people who measure, verify, and continuously improve.” “Collecting data is getting easier. Interpreting it well is where the real value lives.” “True innovation isn’t about chasing trends. It’s about reducing uncertainty and delivering better outcomes.” “Homes aren’t a collection of parts. They’re systems, and HVAC sits right in the middle of that system.” In this solo episode,...
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EP250 Beyond the Equipment: Reflections on 250 Episodes of HVAC and Building Science with Eric and Bill (December 2025)
Building HVAC Science
Quotes from the Episode: “Good building systems don’t start with equipment—they start with a plan and a thoughtful process.” “Most comfort problems aren’t equipment problems; they’re building problems we haven’t taken the time to understand.” “If even one episode helps someone take the next step in their career, then it’s all been worth it.” Episode 250 of the Building HVAC Science Podcast flips the script. Instead of Bill Spohn and Eric Kaiser doing the interviewing, TruTech Tools’ Senior Marketing Manager Ginny Hebert steps into the host seat to reflect on 250...
info_outlineEric Kaiser sits down with Haley Harlow and Al Mitchell from PHIUS (Passive House Institute US) to explore Revive 2024, a groundbreaking new retrofit standard focused on thermal resilience and healthier, safer existing buildings. Haley shares her path from Pennsylvania College of Technology to her current role managing building certifications at PHIUS. At the same time, Al recounts his journey from aspiring car engineer to building scientist, drawn to the elegant complexity of whole-building systems.
Together, they unpack how Revive differs from traditional PHIUS new-construction standards. Instead of focusing on heating and cooling load targets, Revive emphasizes thermal resilience—a building’s ability to remain habitable for up to a week during power outages or extreme weather. They also discuss ReviveCalc, PHIUS’s new software tool for analyzing retrofit scenarios, allowing designers to test various upgrade packages, balance cost and performance, and phase improvements over time. The tool incorporates lifecycle cost analysis, dynamic energy modeling, and resilience metrics, making advanced design decisions more accessible to real-world projects.
Both guests share their excitement about addressing the massive stock of underperforming existing buildings. Haley connects it to her own experience growing up in energy-intensive apartments, while Al reflects on how to use today’s computing power better to design resilient, efficient homes. They close with a shared message: retrofitting our current buildings is not only possible, it’s essential for the future of sustainability, comfort, and community resilience.
Key Takeaways
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PHIUS Revive 2024 focuses on retrofits, bringing resilience and energy equity to the existing building stock.
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Thermal resilience replaces traditional load metrics, ensuring buildings remain habitable during grid or system failures.
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ReviveCalc helps users model envelope and mechanical upgrades, estimate lifecycle costs, and optimize phase-by-phase improvements.
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The program aligns with ASHRAE Guideline 0.2 for commissioning and integrates EPA’s Energy Savings Plus Health framework.
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Air sealing remains the top “bang for the buck” retrofit measure for both comfort and energy savings.
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CPHC certification (Certified PHIUS Consultant) is open to anyone—no degree required.
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The Revive approach balances performance, cost, and practicality for real-world projects.
Haley’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/haley-harlow-3965b41b5
Al’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/al-mitchell-bb74827b/
Info on Phius Revive 2024: https://www.phius.org/phius-revive-2024
This episode was recorded in October 2025.