Each 90-minute track session receives 1.5 continuing education units from the following professional organizations: AIA, BPI, GBCI, InterNACHI, NAHB, and NARI. To receive your credits, you must sign in at the beginning of each session
Track co-chairs: Robb Aldrich, Steven Winter Associates; Dave Stecher, IBACOS
Heat Pump Water Heaters in Cold Climates
Session 1: Wednesday, March 6, 11:00am-12:30pm
Session Chair: Margaret Song, Cape Light Compact
Session Speakers: Linda Wigington, Affordable Comfort, Inc.; David White, Right Environments; Carl Shapiro, Steven Winter Associates, Inc.
Description: Heat Pump Water Heaters can use much less energy than conventional electric water heaters, but they remove heat from the home. Do they make sense in a cold climate? If so, when and how? How do they compare to other water heating options using gas, LP or oil? Speakers will present data from several HPWH studies and will discuss challenges and opportunities in cold climates.
Air Source Heat Pumps
Session 2: Wednesday, March 6, 2:00pm-3:30pm
Session Chair: John Walsh, Western Massachusetts Electric Company
Session Speaker: Adam Kohler, Kohler & Lewis Engineering
Description: Modern air source heat pumps are much more versatile than older generations, and even in colder climates they’ve become a viable alternative to fossil-fuel heating systems. The session will discuss configuration, challenges, and performance of these systems in several different applications and building types.
Getting the Most from Condensing Boilers
Session 3: Wednesday, March 6, 4:00pm-5:30pm
Session Chair: Lois Arena, Steven Winter Associates, Inc.
Session Speakers: Lois Arena, Steven Winter Associate, Inc.; Tom Butcher, Brookhaven National Laboratory
Description: High-efficiency, condensing boilers have been available in the U.S. since the 1990’s and are now common in the residential market, but in many instances they are not achieving consistent condensing performance levels. This presentation outlines key findings from both laboratory tests and long-term field evaluations and will provide guidance in system design and configuration to optimize safe, reliable, and efficient boiler performance.
Multifamily Ventilation Challenges
Session 4: Thursday, March 7, 8:30am-10:00am
Session Chair: Robb Aldrich, Steven Winter Associate, Inc
Session Speaker: Grant Salmon, Steven Winter Associates, Inc.; Larry Harmon, Air Barrier Solutions
Description: Ventilation in multifamily buildings can be tricky. As buildings get taller, pressures can get crazy. This session will focus on analyses of high-rise apartment buildings including mapping of complex pressure patterns, airflow networks, and interactions between envelopes and mechanical systems. Discussion will combine the results of the studies with the existing peer-reviewed body of knowledge and highlight strategies which may prove effective in the design, construction, and operation of tall multifamily buildings, as well as a discussion of potential retrofit solutions.
The Sun and Thermal Loads
Session 5: Thursday, March 7, 10:30am-12:00pm
Session Chair: Robb Aldrich, Steven Winter Associate, Inc
Session Speaker: Everett Barber; Jon Child, PV Squared; Craig Robertson, Heliocentrix, Inc.
Description: Using the sun to heat people, spaces, and water is centuries old. Three practitioners with decades of experience will discuss the role of solar heating in modern buildings. Does solar space heating make sense? When, and how? How about water heating? How does active solar thermal compare to PV-powered heat pumps? The panel will give their perspectives on when “solar heating” makes sense and how it’s best accomplished.
Simplified Space Conditioning for Low-Load Homes
Session 6: Thursday, March 7, 2:00pm-3:30pm
Session Chair: David Stecher, IBACOS
Session Speaker: Duncan Prahl, IBACOS; David Stecher, IBACOS
Description: As home heating and cooling loads get smaller and smaller, can builders save on HVAC equipment costs? Does heating and cooling need to be delivered to all spaces in a very low-load home? Through modeling and field tests, researchers have investigated low-load homes with HVAC systems with limited or no distribution. Speakers will review findings including cost savings, comfort implications, and recommendations on when and how to implement simple HVAC strategies.
Closing Forum: What will be the hot topics at BE25?
Session 7: Thursday March 7, 4:00pm-5:30pm
Session Chair: Paul Eldrenkamp
Session Speakers: TBA
Description: The final session of the day will wrap up everything we learned at BE13 by forcing us to think out loud about where all our new-gained knowledge is taking us. The format: Six NESEA thought leaders will work within the pecha kucha framework to offer their predictions regarding what we’ll be grappling with in the sessions and workshops at Building Energy in March, 2025. This will followed by a period of quick-paced audience discussion. The 90 minutes will then wrap with a compelling preview of NESEA, 12 years hence. This closing session will offer an engaged response to the too-rarely asked question: “Just where are we going with all of this?“
