41 - Rahul Shah - Tight House
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James: Hello, and welcome to Marketing Passive House, the podcast where we hear from architects, designers, builders, suppliers, owners, and other experts in the Passive House and high-performance building space. We'll be talking about what's working and what's needed when it comes to marketing buildings that meet or aspire to the Passive House standard.

James: I'm your host, James Turner, and today I'm joined by Rahul Shah, owner and principal architect at Tight House Architecture and Interior Design. Rahul, welcome to the show.

Rahul: Thanks for having me, James. Nice to be here

James: Yeah, it's great. So before we get into it, and for people who are just meeting you for the first time, could you share a little bit more about who you are, what you do, and how you started on your passive house journey?

Rahul: Sure. Yeah. Like you said, my name is Rahul Shah, principal architect at Tight House. I'm a solopreneur. I started Tight House about two and a half years ago. really-- The-- It was a-- It's a long walk to how I really got to being interested in Passive House and thinking it's something that I can really take on because it is a dense subject and to be honest, I was scared of taking on even more architects. Level of competencies even get to be a licensed architect is a very high bar, and a Passive House is yet another one. It's Why often it's a, a whole-- a completely separate sub-consultant in the building industry. but I could go back even to grad school where we learned about how-- what that means and that was kinda my first introduction to it.

Rahul: I went to Parsons, The New School for Design, I get-- where I got my master's in architecture, and we learned a bit about building science there. But it was really where the rubber met the road. I was at a, a s-very small boutique architecture firm in New York City, and I was at a site visit for a recently completed town home. And I re-- It was a very cold February day and there was some condensation on the interior of a window and this w-this was partial new construction. And I just thought, "This seems like we could have done something about this to make this not happen." And so I kind of learned-- started digging into a little bit more, and then I ended up at a different firm where we specialized in that for affordable housing, senior housing lots of-- some of the developers included units for homeless or very low-income people.

Rahul: So these are people who really can benefit from living in a Passive House for many reasons aside from comfort, but the monetary value of it and the reduction of utility costs

James: And I feel like the-- in the l- least in the position to have their own make their own fixes

Rahul: Completely.

James: to the house, right? You can't just put in new windows if you're on a limited budget. Yeah.

Rahul: Yeah

James: Cool. That's a cool way in. I think that's like the being on a building site and seeing condensation and being like, "Come on."

Rahul: Yeah. Yeah.

James: cool.

Rahul: yeah. Not to knock. That, that architect was fantastic and w- one of the best architects that I've ever worked for. So this is no knock, but,

James: Oh yeah. No. It's just like that, that moment where you just have this realization that there's probably a solution to this kind of everywhere problem of condensation and like it's really common, right? Like it's

Rahul: Like the bui- the building itself is a puzzle that architects have to design the puzzle themselves for the contractor to put together. And if the pieces aren't fitting properly, then that's where those those weakness, those weak points are exposed

James: Nice. And so you saw that... did you work in another firm with your Passive House credentials?

Rahul: So I only worked at the affordable housing practice when I got my CPHC and that's g- that's like it-- As I mentioned before, it's like building all these skills on top of each other. Because one thing that I really learned at that that first place where we saw the condensation in the window is just about keeping like water out of the building and layering membranes and figuring out the path of water and a rain screen and things like that.

Rahul: And so that is a skill set of detailing at that three-inch equals a foot scale in order to understand how to, how those assemblies are really working together. And that kind of was a real weapon when coming into a practice where they're trying to get Passive House certification for all those buildings and-- Because it's all about like the layering and lapping and flashing and all the tapes and membranes that need to be part of the entire assembly for exterior walls

James: Yeah. And so

Rahul: attention to detail in, in, in one way

James: So which-- Okay, so this is making me think t- this is a good way to br- a good place to bring up the name of your new company. And by the way, I really like that you identify as a solopreneur. I feel it's ob- not that self-employed architects aren't, but I think that term, applying that term implies a sort of lens of how you're operating in the world that maybe I don't hear used as much in your space.

Rahul: Yeah. In, in, as a marketing kind of podcast, solopreneur is thrown around a lot in, in like other spheres of marketing and business. And so I g- I must have gleaned that from somewhere else.

James: Yeah, it's great. That is-- that's like essentially the sort of impetus for this podcast is like I've been doing marketing in tech and SaaS for a decade, and then at the same time being a passive house nerd on the side. And then I was like, a lot of these things that work in that realm apply to this realm.

James: And so this is my attempt to stitch that together and see where they fit. So I felt like a resonance with that, and also with your company name, Tight House, which I think is an awesome-- Like I love it.

Rahul: Thanks. Yeah, it is... tight house... Air tightness is a core tenet of, Passive House principles, and I feel like it's the most important one. It's the, the-- one of the most critical cornerstones of it. And so I focus on single-family residential. Tight House made sense.

James: Keeping it tight.

Rahul: That's right

James: I love it. So moving into that side of things if you don't mind I d- it, I th- I often marvel at the fact that Passive House is the right answer for scale-built affordable housing and also the right answer for top-end luxury housing. And so that's the direction that y- Tight House is going in.

James: Is that right?

Rahul: Yeah, that's right. I, I really see You know, a lot of people in the building science industry have great metrics for, like, how the building is performing, and that's all conveyed through numbers and air changes per hour, for example. But I think that the typical homeowner does not understand what that exactly means. And a developer of a, an affordable housing development does because of just the, the multidimensional way that they're evaluating how a property can perform, not only economically for their development business, but also, from a utility standpoint. And so Passive House principles, when applied to a single family residence, actually is a much higher quality of living. It's not only like a standard for designing and constructing a well-built home, but the quality of life in a passive house is something that you feel, and it's much more tangible than a high-end appliance or walk-in

James: Right

Rahul: shower.

Rahul: If that bathroom is cold in the winter and you're taking a steamy shower and you get out, it's not... It's something that you really feel. And that's a difficult thing to explain or market because it's a sensation

James: Yeah. So have you-- what have, what, what attempts have you made at doing that, getting that across?

Rahul: I think that equating a-as I mentioned, airtightness is a core tenet of the five tenets of passive house, right? So

Rahul: You could say that airtight construction be equated to pest-free home that is more durable because there is not... There's membranes on the exterior that provide a more durable barrier between inside and outside, and bugs can't get in. It also means that there's no drafts, th-which could be part of even new construction given the quality of the contractor and what they're able to deliver. Because, um, often architects, Like I said the, the competencies are very wide for any architect. And the reliance on the builder to Figure out details or deliver a certain quality is maybe not always included in that construction document set. And with Passive House, it is not an option to rely on a builder's competency because it would be impossible to price. Just be like, "Oh, we'll make it Passive House." They won't know because that's-- they're not a designer, and that's not, that's no-- that's not finger-pointing or anything. This is just like, be comprehensive in the drawing set in order to show the detail properly, all of the materials and how they're all folded into each other.

Rahul: So

James: Yeah

Rahul: Continue with all the comps, if you will, between the building science and the average homeowner, you could say that insulation, a continuous insulation, which basically is a blanket over your entire home it's gonna deliver more even temp-temperatures on the interior of your home because there's more resistance from interior of the house to the exterior of your house because energy is always trying to f-find an equilibrium and so in the heating season you're fighting the winter cold air on the outside and so you have basically a thermos, so when you have a passive house. And, high performance windows you could equate to, better sound insulation. It-- You're gonna have a quieter interior because instead of two-- a dual pane window, you're gonna have a triple pane window. And that and also the assembly of that window will be thermally broken. Gasketing is more robust, and so that's going to, You're gonna have it quieter inside. If you're near a busy road or train tracks or anything that, again, drawing the equivalent between the benefit of an affordable housing where perhaps it's by an above ground train rail or like a busy highway for a single family residence or even that could be in an urban setting too. More of a acoustic respite

James: Yeah,

Rahul: you could say that thermal bridge-free detailing is gonna lower utility costs, it's gonna increase durability. And the ERV mechanical systems you're breathing fresh air, and especially these days... it's spring when we're recording this, and,

James: Great.

Rahul: Pollen is gonna-- The allergies are not gonna act up as much because you're having fresh filtered air delivered twenty-four seven inside your home. And breaking away from the building science kind of language and communicating that to the real benefit of what do those specifications actually mean for your life

James: Yeah. Who wouldn't want a home that's warm in the winter, cool in the summer, quiet all year round with fresh air and no bugs? And like it's, if it-- I, I've heard it come up a couple times where it's basically like people just don't know that's even possible.

Rahul: That's right

James: So you just just that alone be like, "No, I can do that.

James: I can make that house for you." They don't care how you make that house if you deliver what they say.

Rahul: Exactly

James: Yeah. That's interesting. I've also heard it said that it'd be great if you could, if air was not invisible. You could like if it was like a different color depending on how clean it was, and then you could, just show oh, imagine if all the air in your house was see-through instead of clouded or whatever

Rahul: I don't-- I do not live... I live in a more than 100-year-old house, and I recently noticed that it was hazy in my living room, and I recently got a an air filter from Amazon, and I was like: "Wow, that's actually better now." is

James: Interesting

Rahul: because it was literally-- the pollen was really bad that day.

James: Wow.

Rahul: Yeah.

James: Wow. There you go. So maybe you could do a before and after, yeah, with the right research. That's cool. And again, I just, I love the fact that if you describe what would be the best housing for affordable housing, it's this. And if you were the richest person in the world wanting to build the best, most comfortable house, this is the answer for them as well.

James: And I think that's a really interesting aspect of Passive House

Rahul: I think that is going-- it-- building code will move the needle on,

Rahul: How everybody builds eventually. Like

James: Right

Rahul: Massachusetts has a very progressive building code for new construction especially. And New Jersey, where I'm based recently did change some requirements for insulation.

Rahul: And that's the thing too is I've, I'm seeing spray foam so much more often, unfortunately, in, new construction or, additions because architects like don't-- they just don't know. Not all architects know about all of these things. And I think that it's a mistake to spray foam everywhere. It gets you into compliance, but at what cost? The cost is greenhouse gases and not very durable wall that will likely crack in ten years

James: Yeah. It's like a, a Permanent Band-Aid or something.

Rahul: Yeah.

James: it's a Band-Aid solution, but it also is an irreversible, essentially,

Rahul: Yeah

James: Band-Aid decision. Yeah. Yeah I got this close to spray f- to doing some spray foaming in my basement when we were getting heat pumps put in because we were trying to improve the air efficiency, and I went down a rabbit hole or two and I was like, "Nope, I'm out.

James: I'm not doing that."

Rahul: Yeah, because then moisture can get trapped behind it, and then there's mold, and then that's your quality even more. You can get sick from that, and there, there can be a real ripple effect from that.

James: So telegraphing luxury, but-- and trying to get people interested, have you found any particular of these aspects that like always land? Like what would you say is your go-to?

Rahul: I think that with everything going on in the world these days utility costs and things like that and touching on that as a kind of tender point

Rahul: That people understand. And it's often that people consider the upfront costs of construction, and that makes sense.

Rahul: It's the most tangible, and it's the-- and it is admittedly money that is due basically immediately in, in-- when it comes to construction and within-- when considering like the life of a home. However, that's one aspect that's not as considered is the what will it cost me to this space comfortable throughout the year? And Once that kind of is pried open a little bit wider, m-maybe are a little bit more amenable to having the conversation

James: Yeah. You gotta just jog that, that short term, the, the knee-jerk short-term

Rahul: Yeah.

James: thinking for a second

Rahul: Exactly. Because it's also a question of how long are you going to live in that house? I do think that is a a, a question you know, warrants like what's your time horizon in this house? Because upfront investment might not be in the cost savings if you don't plan to be there for a while. There is that.

James: Yeah. A fast fashion mentality. Like it won't last long, but it doesn't need to type of thing. Yeah

Rahul: Yeah. Or it's just-- I think that some people really do wanna be good stewards of their property and to the environment and this is a value that is, to their core, and they don't want to trespass against that feeling. But there is a very real, cross of the amount of time that you spend in the home to realize the savings in the utility cost

James: Which is why I think selling it only on cost isn't... it doesn't it's not a guarantee,

Rahul: right.

James: Yeah.

Rahul: th- if you think about it in another way then if see your property as almost like an heirloom that you would pass down, then you're passing on the benefit of the way that the home is constructed for your children or, future generations, and depends on your perspective of brothers and sisters

James: Yeah that's true. I- it makes me think of the, like the s- the seventh generation thing. I don't know if you're familiar.

Rahul: is

James: There's a brand called Seventh Generation, and I don't know en- enough about the brand to know, but the, the gist of it is from i- Indigenous cultures from North America, they would make decisions considering the next seven generations.

James: So in that sense, right?

Rahul: Yeah, exactly

James: thinking about when you sell the house, but like who's gonna move into it next, and next sort of... Yeah. Like a leg- I guess it's not th- like the egoic kind of legacy decision so much as generously looking forward and wanting to help future people you'll never meet.

James: And,

Rahul: Planting trees for

Rahul: Shade.

James: That's right. Yeah. I know the one you mean.

James: Yeah. Yeah. But I r- that kind of stuff, I think it, it lurks just under the surface for people. I feel like it's a real human desire that kind of is buried a bit by our modern sort of distracting reality, but it's there.

James: If you stop and think about it, you're like, "Yeah, it'd be so cool if 100 years from now some completely different person is still here and like quietly thanking the people who built it right."

Rahul: Yes. Yeah.

James: Like

Rahul: But that's also of the difficulties in, conveying that this is a worthwhile endeavor because you don't look at wall insulation. You don't visually appreciate wall insulation. You're not

James: Very true.

Rahul: this wall assembly is so good. It's so beautiful." It- it's, it... you're appreciating the wall tile on the interior face of it, and that's

James: That's a very good point.

Rahul: Yeah

James: Health is another... I've I've recently had a conversation where a gu- the guest was saying how they don't think of return on investment, they think about return on health, and not even-- Take the money out of it. It's the, the quality of your life, which again, you were talking about quality.

James: And to measure it on those terms, even if you're only there for five years

Rahul: It absolutely is. I think that you would probably notice a marked difference if you lived in a passive house for five years and then moved into a typically code-minimum built home with regards to air quality especially. The, with an ERV constantly delivering fresh air, that's going to be filtered fresh air.

Rahul: It's gonna be markedly different experience to live in another kind of home doesn't have that mechanical system

James: Do you have any places where people can go? Do you have any any contacts where you can be like, "Oh, go stay a couple nights in this place"?

Rahul: No, I don't. I

James: No.

Rahul: Yeah

James: I feel like that's a... I had this v- vision of like a, an Airbnb network. Th- there-- you can piece it together by searching, but it'd be cool if there was a purpose-built find the nearest Passive House accommodation

Rahul: Yeah.

James: and pay for your clients to g- spend a couple nights there while they think about

Rahul: This is a model that an architect friend of mine h- has recently just launched his own Airbnb that he designed himself and uses it as a marketing tool for the, his design services, but also like as a, just an experience and another asset to his business and his personal life.

James: Nice. Yeah. To to your point,

Rahul: One day. One

James: you c- yeah, I know it's not exactly a, a set of business cards from Vistaprint. It's...

Rahul: Yeah

James: Yeah. But to your point about the fact you can't visualize the benefits, you just have to experience them, that's, yeah, that's the way

Rahul: Because the even in an disorganized home, you can still feel that luxury, even though the mail is still out on the kitchen table

James: Nice.

James: That's-- That resonates with me.

Rahul: Yeah. That resonates with e- everybody.

James: Yeah. Yeah. Do you think there's

Rahul: As much as we'd all like to say that we have an Instagram-worthy home,

James: Right.

Rahul: Real life exists,

James: Yep. Yep. So you can... Indeed. Indeed, sir. Yeah, you can feel the benefits of Passive House without having to get your whole life together first.

Rahul: Yeah,

James: Yep.

Rahul: It's always there and it's lasting

James: Cool. This has been really great. Where would be the best place for people to go to find out more about you online and connect?

Rahul: So my website is tighthouse.com, just how it sounds T-I-G-H-T-H-O-U-S-E. And my Instagram handle is tighthouse_. Those are... I keep that pretty updated. I also have a blog where I'm constantly updating with more general things about for homeowners about renovation, additions and new construction, and just how to navigate all those complexities.

Rahul: It's really meant to just be as a resource rather than come to me. I think it's pretty universal

James: Right.

Rahul: It's all, my perspective, so it's... Everyone's got opinions.

James: We sure do.

Rahul: Yeah.

James: Awesome. I'll definitely link to all of those things. Yeah, this is awesome. Thanks so much for joining me today

Rahul: Thanks so much for having me, James

James: Pleasure. You've been listening to Marketing Passive House. I'm James Turner, and I hope you'll join me again next time.