A visit from SUNY Ulster

Students from the SUNY Ulster National Sustainable Building Advisor Certificate Program visited on Friday afternoon to see our Passive House in construction. Instructors Janus Welton and Clifford Cooper led the group. Janus heads Eco-Architecture Design Works and Clifford is a Senior Industrial Hygienist with Vertex Engineering. Dennis Wedlick and Bill Stratton spoke to the class about their experience building the first Certified Passive House in New York State (ours will be their second). “No leaks,” Dennis said, pointing to a gap around the unfinished door, soon to be foamed, taped and sealed. The airtight seal of a Passive House is one key difference between a Passive House, which is designed to drive down energy consumption for heating and cooling, and a traditional passive solar house, which aims to maximize solar energy.