Professional Frederictonian. I design HVAC Building Systems for a living. Has a basic grasp of reality. More coffee, please. #GFOP
Oct 10, 2023 • 13 tweets • 5 min read
Here’s a fun little story about how this map made KC Irving the largest landowner in New Brunswick.
Most of the lines on this map were built between 1860 and 1900 during the railroad boom. The Colony of New Brunswick initially began seeding railroad investment by offering cash.
The Province offered $10,000 per mile of completed railroad. This quickly turned out to be a mistake and the government ran out of cash. Fredericton did have plenty of something else on hand: land.
Aug 30, 2022 • 7 tweets • 3 min read
Imagine being an opinion columnist in 1910 smugly explaining how ludicrous it was to expect widespread adoption of the gasoline engine.
The Model T had a range of around 150 to 200 miles. That assumed you could find somewhere to buy 10 gallons of gasoline.
You generally bought gasoline from automobile dealers (that’s how KC Irving got into the business, from his days selling Fords and the gasoline they consumed). What if you ran out of gas in a town with no gasoline? Get laughed at while a guy delivers some on a horse.
Aug 29, 2022 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
The "your kid's classroom probably does not have fresh air" comment isn't applicable to all schools. At least in my experience in New Brunswick, new schools are built with adequate ventilation and fresh air.
I'm a pretty strong advocate for fresh outside air. Air filtration and air cleaners can scrub contaminants from air, but can't prevent CO2 buildup as people spend time in a space. Fresh air both reduces contaminant concentration and CO2 concentration.
Jun 23, 2020 • 11 tweets • 2 min read
From an HVAC engineering perspective, here's what I've learned about coronavirus prevention - the key is to control the amount of outside air brought into a building as well as to control the humidity.
Almost all buildings have air supply into them. Your office probably has a couple of grilles in the ceiling that blow air in and pull air out. That air is not all fresh air from outside. Buildings recirculate 75-90% of the building air movement, with some stale air exhausted out.
Feb 28, 2020 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
I’m really proud of my professional organization @ashraenews tonight and our response to the Coronavirus. One month ago I was in Orlando at our Winter Meeting. I sit on the Government Affairs Committee with people from around the world.
At each meeting we go around the room to talk about possible government collaborations. Our Regional Chair from East Asia, a professor from Hong Kong, told us that the overwhelming priority for governments was the new virus. They needed guidance ASAP.
