UnBuild It Podcast

Favorites from the philosophy of building to historical graphic details--here you go!
Jake: 

• Fine Homebuilding, Journal of Light Construction
• A Year in Provence (Mayle), 
• The "Code" book
• The World in a Grain (Beiser)

Steve: 

• the FIRST Architectural Graphic Standards (1932)
• The Most Beautiful House in the World (Rybczynski)
• Home - the History of Domesticity [we couldn't actually find this one]
• The Tipping Point (Gladwell)

Pete:

• Designing the Exterior Wall (Brock)
• Water in Buildings (Rose)
• Never Home Alone (Dunn)

Jack-of-all trades Mark Willie is one of the most interesting folks in our industry. He loves buildings, loves people, and loves to connect the two (check out Mark's Build Small Casitas podcast). Steve and Pete delve deep and sometimes pretty wayward to tease out the real Mark Willie.

This week Jake & Peter are joined by Bob Kelly of Wickright. A long career in the construction industry has taken Bob from high-end woodworking to roofing artist. As the owner of general contracting business in Chicago focussing on low-slope roofs in split face block buildings Bob has developed system solutions for repeat problems. He now owns a materials company that can be found at wickright.com

UBIP LOVES Q&A! This episode is nothing short of far-ranging: passive cooling techniques for hot climates, the need for roofing underlayment underneath ZIP roof sheathing, several details for interior basement insulation, and finding high performance building professionals for different markets. And the best is saved for last: Pete tells a story connecting moisture, modeling, and pornography!

Steve and Jake take the lead describing how they communicate as builder and architect, BOTH of them sounding out the importance of EVERYONE spending quality time at the job site. Pete finally pipes up with a Scopes of Work program he and Steve worked on in the Building America program. All three wrap up with the idea of Balanced Building: run your job sites and your business as high performance operations.

No, Steve, the most challenging is not the one-armed paper hanger. Both HVAC & Insulation contractors need to up their game because their equipment and materials have become so much more advanced and complex. This session covers common HVAC and insulation problems and solutions.

Steve Baczek drives this discussion and he is fit to be tied regarding labels like high performance, sustainable, green--you name it. And he goes after "slackers" in our profession who need to up their game when it comes to building performance. Here is Steve's premise, see what you think: Prioritizing for high performance means put on your big boy pants and meet the needs of your client and the planet. If you can't figure out what those priorities are, find an easier industry to make hay...

What happens when a couple of UnBuild It contributors get invited to Switzerland by Siga to learn about how it’s done across the pond? You’ll have to listen all the way through this one to find out.

From the sun to wood to heat pumps, the UnBuildIt guys get all fired up about heat sources. The discussion ranges over thermal comfort, the importance of building enclosure performance, adding domestic hot water, and even teepees. You had no idea just how informative and entertaining heat sources can be with these guys...

In everyone's career, there is a turning point, a point in time that was "before" and "after." And for many of us, that point involves Building Science Corporation. Come hear some backstory on one of the most powerful and influential building performance companies in North America.