Buildings account for roughly 40% of global energy consumption and carbon emissions, yet one of the biggest drivers of that energy use remains largely invisible: HVAC systems.

In this episode of Green Disruptors: Scaling the Future, host Megan Kjar sits down with Jim Metropoulos, founder of BlueBox Air, to unpack a problem that’s been hiding in plain sight for over a century — biofouling inside HVAC heat transfer coils.

Jim shares how a background far outside traditional engineering led to an accidental but powerful breakthrough: a patented, enzyme-based process that cleans and automates HVAC systems from the inside out — without chemicals, shutdowns, or disruption. The result?

30–50% efficiency restoration in fouled systems

Dramatically lower energy costs and peak load demand

Improved indoor air quality

Fast ROI that often pays back in under a year

From hospitals and high-rise buildings to data centers powering AI, this conversation reveals why HVAC is the foundation of the modern world — and why solving this one choke point could meaningfully impact global energy use and emissions at scale.

This episode isn’t about moral arguments or sustainability buzzwords. It’s about performance, economics, and systems that finally work the way they were supposed to.