Trade Show Demo Stages

Time

Stage 1 — off the 400 aisle

Time

Stage 2 — off the 1100 aisle

Stage 1 opens at 11am

High Performance Strawbale Walls

Presenter(s): Jacob Racusin & Ace McArleton, New Frameworks Natural Building
Description: Since the 1980s, straw bales have played a modest part in the emerging world of ecological building. Today, the straw bale wall is being constructed to a new, high-performance level, meeting such demanding standards as Passive House, Living Building Challenge, and Net Zero Energy buildings. This demonstration will present a hybrid approach to wall construction which features full-wall R-values of over 50 with a moisture-resilient, vapor-open assembly built from natural materials that are widely available with an incredibly low cradle-to-cradle carbon and toxic profile. A full scale model will be used to show all of the components of the system.

Dense Pack Cellulose Installation Prep

Presenter(s): Bill Hulstrunk & Chris White, National Fiber
Description: Bill and Chris will demonstrate how to prepare wall cavities, both shallow and deep, for installation of cellulose to uniformly achieve specified densities. They will show how netting is used to create cavities of manageable volume, fastening techniques using staples, and the use of contact adhesives. (Note: demonstrating the dense pack blow-in of cellulose itself is too dusty a process to be executed indoors, so the demonstration will be limited to the preparation work only — but they will bring a blowing machine that does not have a motor in it to support a discussion about the installation of the cellulose.

Penetration Air Sealing

Presenter(s): Ken Levenson, 475 High Performance Building Supply
Description: Tight envelopes are tormented by a small army of specialist subcontractors who arrive in mid-flight and punch holes in the air barrier for pipes, cables, ducts, flues, vents, hoses, conduits, drains – and that’s not even including the windows and doors. Ken will show how all these penetrations can be integrated in to a durable, continuous, tight and unified air barrier system.

Infrared Diagnostic Imaging

Presenter(s): Flemming Lund, Infrared Diagnostic, LLC
Description: Flemming will demonstrate the range of infrared diagnostic cameras and their particular capabilities. He will begin using a real-time projected camera image to show its operational capabilities and sensitivities- hot and cold objects and human subjects will be involved. This will be followed PowerPoint projections of building diagnostic images that will show how this technology is used to understand building energy performance as well as thermal bridge and water penetration failures. He will also cover different infrared camera options and other diagnostic tools that work well together with the infrared camera technology.

Duct Sealing Techniques

Presenter(s): Eric Wilder & Will D’Arrigo, Conservation Services Group
Description: Two duct dogs will be set up on the demo stage. The audience will be given a quick demonstration on how to air seal ductwork, as well as a quick tutorial on how to perform a duct blaster test, during which time a baseline for each duct dogs will also be set. Volunteers will then be selected to seal up the duct dogs. Participants will be given Tyvek suits, mastic, UL rated tape, and 5 minutes to seal up the duct dogs as much as possible. Whichever team achieves the greatest reduction in duct leakage wins. Participants will be asked to share observations and the results will be put in the context of the energy codes.

Air Sealing Tapes and Compatible Substrates

Presenter(s): Peter Yost & Dave Gauthier, BuildingGreen
Description: Successful air barrier systems depend upon flexibly and durably connecting various components in a unified enclosure. Tapes (along with sealants, adhesives, and gaskets) are the joining agents. Peter has been hard at work in recent months trying to understand the performance of various tape products from various manufacturers, and he will demonstrate the tenacity (or lack thereof) of these air sealing tapes on various substrates with various or no primers. Come and see for yourself just how easy (or difficult) it is to actually pull this stuff apart.

Stump the Energy Nerds

Presenter(s): Martin Holladay, Green Building Advisor
Description: Martin and several colleagues have agreed to be the “nerds” accepting questions in the spirit of a “stumps-the-chumps” challenge. We are looking for more “companion nerds”. Bruce Coldham will be the MC and queue the questions from the immediate audience — and from other conference attendees that submit them. Got a question, a bone to pick, or an axe to grind? We got time.

Data Loggers/Monitoring

Presenter(s): Scott Ellis, Onset Corporation
Description: Relevant and accurate performance data (as an alternative to arm-waving) is a basic requirement of any serious conversation, yet in our industry the former remains elusive and the latter flourishes. Scott will attempt to demystify data logging. He will demonstrate a range of data loggers for tracking temperature and humidity, electric consumption, run-time and more, and show how they can be used to inform us on the confounding habits of building users.

PV Mounting on Various Roof Materials

Presenter(s): Christopher Derby Kilfoyle, Berkshire Photovoltaics Services; Phillipe Rigollaud, PV Squared
Description: Christopher and Philippe will demonstrate preferred methods of mounting PV arrays for various roofing surfaces/materials to assure weatherproofing, structural integrity and equipment durability. Pitched and flat roof strategies will be reviewed for mounting feet,posts and clips, rail connections and splicing as well as appropriate sealant types, flashing plates and boots, fasteners and maintenance procedures. Installation methods to prevent fastener failure and galling as well as water leaks will be emphasized.

TBD

Presenter(s): TBD
Description: TBD

DER Wrap n’ Strap

Presenter(s): David Joyce & Gary Bergeron, Synergy Construction
Description: Using constructed mockups, Synergy Construction will show various ways in which supplementary rigid foam board insulation can be added to existing frame buildings to improve their air tightness and thermal performance without creating destructive condensation and water entry problems. The demo will concentrate on approaches to execution at window & door openings and consider air sealing, water management, and reduced thermal bridging.

Liquid Applied Weather Resistant Barrier

Presenter(s): Joe Studer, Tremco Barrier Solutions
Description: To build a wall correctly, a wall must stop liquid water leaks, stop the passage of moisture-laden air and stop heat loss with uncompromised insulation. This demonstration will apply a liquid-applied membrane directly over wood sheathing showing how the sheathing is coated, how seams are sealed, counter flashing and flashing details for windows and how to detail intersection between bottom edge of sheathing and the foundation.

Cool PassiveHouse Gadgets

Presenter(s): Katrin Klingenberg, Passive House Institute US
Description: Passive House has raised the bar on achieved energy efficiency and air tightness in wood frame construction with exquisite and excruciating attention to detail. Much of this is made easier with specialized products. Katrin will host a “what is in the box?” session on such exciting products on the market (from newest passive modeling tools to long-lasting air sealing products to thermally broken structural elements like cost effective high R curtain walls etc.) to show & tell.

Blower Door Rodeo

Presenter(s): Will D’Arrigo, Conservation Services Group, and Brad Cook, Building Performance Services LLC
Description: This begins as a step-by-step demonstration of setup and operation of a blower door, and some important tips on its in-building air tightness diagnosis. As the excitement begins to rise, Will and Brad will don blindfolds and engage in cutthroat blind blower-door set-up and measurement jobs – can they get a reading in their pitched blackness? Who’s in first? Does it really matter? Come and find out.

Time

Stage 1

Time

Stage 2

LED Lighting LM79 and LM80 Standards

Presenter(s): Steven Rosen, Available Light
Description: LED lighting technology has arrived and, in many applications, demonstrate energy efficiency parity with CFLs. But the world of LEDs is a “wild west” of innovation and production, one in which specifiers and consumers can be inadvertently gunned down. Steven will show some of the latest LED products and, in particular, will explain the emerging LM79 and LM80 Standards that attempt to level the LED evaluation playing field that may help you dodge a bullet or two.

Dense Pack Cellulose

Presenter(s): Chris White & Bill Hulstrunk, National Fiber
Description: Bill and Chris will demonstrate how to prepare wall cavities, both shallow and deep, for installation of cellulose to uniformly achieve specified densities. They will show how netting is used to create cavities of manageable volume, fastening techniques using staples, and the use of contact adhesives. (Note: demonstrating the dense pack blow-in of cellulose itself is too dusty a process to be executed indoors, so the demonstration will be limited to the preparation work only — but they will bring a blowing machine that does not have a motor in it to support a discussion about the installation of the cellulose.

Infrared Diagnostic Imaging

Presenter(s): Flemming Lund, Infrared Diagnostic, LLC
Description: Flemming will demonstrate the range of infrared diagnostic cameras and their particular capabilities. He will begin using a real-time projected camera image to show its operational capabilities and sensitivities- hot and cold objects and human subjects will be involved. This will be followed PowerPoint projections of building diagnostic images that will show how this technology is used to understand building energy performance as well as thermal bridge and water penetration failures. He will also cover different infrared camera options and other diagnostic tools that work well together with the infrared camera technology.

Penetration Air Sealing

Presenter(s): Ken Levenson, 475 High Performance Building Supply
Description: Tight envelopes are tormented by a small army of specialist subcontractors who arrive in mid-flight and punch holes in the air barrier for pipes, cables, ducts, flues, vents, hoses, conduits, drains – and that’s not even including the windows and doors. Ken will show how all these penetrations can be integrated in to a durable, continuous, tight and unified air barrier system.

PV Mounting on Various Roof Materials

Presenter(s): Christopher Derby Kilfoyle, Berkshire Photovoltaic Services; Phillipe Rigollaud, PV Squared
Description: Christopher and Philippe will demonstrate preferred methods of mounting PV arrays for various roofing surfaces/materials to assure weatherproofing, structural integrity and equipment durability. Pitched and flat roof strategies will be reviewed for mounting feet, posts and clips, rail connections and splicing as well as appropriate sealant types, flashing plates and boots, fasteners and maintenance procedures. Installation methods to prevent fastener failure and galling as well as water leaks will be emphasized.

DER Wrap n’ Strap

Presenter(s): David Joyce & Gary Bergeron, Synergy Construction
Description: Using constructed mockups, Synergy Construction will show various ways in which supplementary rigid foam board insulation can be added to existing frame buildings to improve their air tightness and thermal performance without creating destructive condensation and water entry problems. The demo will concentrate on approaches to execution at window & door openings and consider air sealing, water management, and reduced thermal bridging.

Fluid Applied Window Flashing to Passive House Solutions

Presenter(s): TBD, Prosoco, Inc.

Stump the Energy Nerds

Presenter(s): Martin Holladay, Green Building Advisor
Description: Martin and several colleagues have agreed to be the “nerds” accepting questions in the spirit of a “stumps-the-chumps” challenge. We are looking for more “companion nerds”. Bruce Coldham will be the MC and queue the questions from the immediate audience — and from other conference attendees that submit them. Got a question, a bone to pick, or an axe to grind? We got time.

LED Lighting – LM79 and LM80 Standards

Presenter(s): Steven Rosen, Available Light
Description: LED lighting technology has arrived and, in many applications, demonstrate energy efficiency parity with CFLs. But the world of LEDs is a “wild west” of innovation and production, one in which specifiers and consumers can be inadvertently gunned down. Steven will show some of the latest LED products and, in particular, will explain the emerging LM79 and LM80 Standards that attempt to level the LED evaluation playing field that may help you dodge a bullet or two.

High Performance Strawbale Walls

Presenter(s): Jacob Racusin & Ace McArleton, New Frameworks Natural Building
Description: Since the 1980s, straw bales have played a modest part in the emerging world of ecological building. Today, the straw bale wall is being constructed to a new, high-performance level, meeting such demanding standards as Passive House, Living Building Challenge, and Net Zero Energy buildings. This demonstration will present a hybrid approach to wall construction which features full-wall R-values of over 50 with a moisture-resilient, vapor-open assembly built from natural materials that are widely available with an incredibly low cradle-to-cradle carbon and toxic profile. A full scale model will be used to show all of the components of the system.

Air Sourced Heat Pumps

Presenter(s): Rick Nortz, Mitsubishi
Air sourced heat pumps are a real game changing product category in our climate. Affordable, efficient, with combined heating & cooling technology driven by (potentially renewably generated) electricity! But this technology, in its purest and most affordable form, pushes us towards point-sourced delivery. Rick will explain what this means, what it looks and sounds like, what compromises are in store, if any, and what envelope measures ought to be taken to maximize the potential of this relatively new technology. (BTW, modern ASHPs are a far cry from their 1980′s era progeny that would freeze up in a mild winter!)

Duct Sealing Techniques

Presenter(s): Eric Wilder & Will D’Arrigo, Conservation Services Group
Description: Two duct dogs will be set up on the demo stage. The audience will be given a quick demonstration on how to air seal ductwork, as well as a quick tutorial on how to perform a duct blaster test, during which time a baseline for each duct dogs will also be set. Volunteers will then be selected to seal up the duct dogs. Participants will be given Tyvek suits, mastic, UL rated tape, and 5 minutes to seal up the duct dogs as much as possible. Whichever team achieves the greatest reduction in duct leakage wins. Participants will be asked to share observations and the results will be put in the context of the energy codes.

Data Loggers/Monitoring

Presenter(s): Scott Ellis, Onset Corporation
Description: Relevant and accurate performance data (as an alternative to arm-waving) is a basic requirement of any serious conversation, yet in our industry the former remains elusive and the latter flourishes. Scott will attempt to demystify data logging. He will demonstrate a range of data loggers for tracking temperature and humidity, electric consumption, run-time and more, and show how they can be used to inform us on the confounding habits of building users.