A Small Space is a Small Space

Today was a relatively calm day at the fair. It was pretty much overcast all day and as I boarded the bus at the MN department of education I thought perhaps it won’t be so crazy. Yet the overcast weather didn’t seem to stop the crows at all. Of course there probably was a smaller amount of people at the fair, but as soon as they try to fit in the 600 SF passive house it always seems like a lot. I guess I’ll look forward to a consitent work load until the fair starts.

Notable People

A couple of notable people talked with me today, and besides the kid that seemed to be imitating barn animals, I think its worth  mentioning. For the most part I’ve been very impressed with the people I’ve talked to. Not too many of them are against the work we are doing, or write it off right away with out even thinking about it. In fact most people already have some knowledge about a particular system or window or idea already and really get engaged talking about it. What follows is a small selection of people.

Remodel Guy

A middle aged guy pulled me aside and after confirming that I was part of the project said he needed to replace the siding on his house and asked what he could do at the same time to make his own perform better. We talked for a while about what his options might be, how taking the opportunity was a good idea, and, what surprised me, we talked most about the specific details of how these solutions should be constructed. This wouldn’t of surprised me. I didn’t come off as some one who was going to do the remodel himself, rather as someone concerned about how the remodel would be done. After our conversation he was very excited and rushed off with a manner that might of convinced me that we was going to start the project as soon as he got home.

Idea Guy

This Guy hung around the passive house for a while and I kept running into him in different locations and parts of the structure. As was a bit older, had a pretty pronounced beard and above all a lot of ideas. He didn’t put them forward right away, he was very open to listening to what I had to say, and he was patient in his questioning. After we would talk for a little bit about some aspect of the building he would always pause for a second with his finger over his month, apparently in deep thought, and then point at what ever we were talking about and suggest an idea. Many of his ideas related to thermal massing or each structures and most of the time he would question me in a manner that left little room for a contradiction. I rather enjoyed listening to his idea and I’m sure he has been thinking about these things for a while.

Undercover Guy

As Ty and myself were talking casually on the east side of the building a man asked us if we were part of the project, we said yes, and he slowly worked his way up to a question I’m sure both Ty and I we surprised by. “what is the fire rating of your walls”. In the moment our only response was what ever code is. We were both a bit worried that the guy would get on our case about not knowing it or something, but he actually smiled and started talking about the importance of his question especially when new materials are being used. He was particularly interested in the foam and we talked for a bit about it. After our conversation he said he really enjoyed the project and then admitted that we was a building inspector. He was very enjoyable to talk to though and instead trying to put down the new construction methods he really wanted to know more about it and figure it out. This was perhaps my favorite conversation of the day.