Season One
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Trailer: Introducing “Cool Air, Hot Takes”
Welcome to Cool Air, Hot Takes, the podcast that breaks down the biggest innovations in HVAC, energy, and building technology with bold opinions, and lots of hot takes.Listen Now -
S1E1: How Venture Capital is Shaping the Future of HVAC
Welcome to the very first episode of Cool Air, Hot Takes, the podcast that keeps HVAC pros ahead of the curve with the latest industry insights, and trends.Listen Now -
S1E2: The Compressor Revolution: What’s Next?
How is air conditioner compressor and bearing technology evolving? And is the HVAC industry ready for what’s next?Listen Now -
S1E3: RefrigeRANTS: The Good, The Bad, and the Banned
What’s the real story behind AC refrigerants? Why are some being phased out, others destroyed, and what does it mean for the HVAC industry?Listen Now -
S1E4: How AI is Changing HVAC (and Your Job)
Is AI really the future of HVAC, or just industry hype?Listen Now -
S1E5: Decarbonization: Challenge or Opportunity?
Is decarbonization the biggest challenge or the biggest opportunity for the HVAC industry?Listen Now -
S1E6: Buildings as Batteries: Demand Response
What if your building could act like a battery? In episode 6 of Cool Air, Hot Takes, learn how demand response and virtual power plants are transforming energy use.Listen Now
Season Two
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Trailer: Cool Air, Hot Takes is BACK For Season 2
Charlie Jelen & Dan Gentry return June 26 for Cool Air, Hot Takes: Season 2, the HVAC podcast that’s as smart as your building’s thermostat and twice as fun.Listen Now -
S2E1: PIC Valves: To Delta T or Not Delta T?
In this episode of the Cool Air, Hot Takes HVAC podcast, we explore how pressure independent control valves can unlock energy savings, fix delta T issues, and much more.Listen Now -
How We Got Here: Our HVAC Journeys & Hot Takes
This week on the Cool Air, Hot Takes podcast, we’re doing something a little different. We’re dropping a special crossover episode from our friends over at the Healthy Spaces podcast, featuring our very own Dan Gentry and Charlie Jelen.Listen Now -
S2E2: Industrial Heat: We’re Gonna Need A Bigger Pump
Today on Cool Air, Hot Takes, Dan and Charlie welcome Ruth Checknoff, Senior Project & Research Director at the Renewable Thermal Collaborative, to talk about the hot (literally) challenge of decarbonizing industrial thermal processes.Listen Now -
S2E3: Asset Management: The Secret Sauce for Great Facilities
From cloud-based platforms that connect every asset and workflow, to improving service speed and accuracy, HVAC asset management is the definition of working smarter, not harder.Listen Now -
S2E4: Data Centers: Hot Servers, Cool Solutions
Today, Sam Brown, Chief Development Officer at Serverfarm, joins hosts Charlie Jelen and Dan Gentry for a deep dive into the world of data centers.Listen Now -
S2E5: The Future of HVAC Techs
This week, Zach Zentz, Technician Productivity Manager at Trane, joins hosts Charlie Jelen and Dan Gentry for a deep dive into the world of HVAC technicians.Listen Now -
Today on Cool Air, Hot Takes™, hosts Charlie Jelen and Dan Gentry sit down with Mike Fierro, Supply Chain Products Manager at SourceBlue (Turner Construction).Listen Now
Season Three
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S3E1: Nvidia’s Ali Heydari on the AI Revolution
We’re back! And we’ve gone big for the first episode of season 3! Ali Heydari, Director of Technical Design at NVIDIA, joins hosts Charlie Jelen and Dan Gentry to unpack how AI “factories” are reshaping data center design.Listen Now -
S3E2: Bring Your Own Power: Fueling Data Centers
Hosts Charlie Jelen and Dan Gentry are back with another data-center-deep-dive - this time with Jason Espeseth, Principal Electrical Engineer at Geronimo Power.Listen Now -
S3E3: How Virtual Design is Changing Construction
Today, Autodesk’s Director of Product Management, Ian Molloy, joins hosts Charlie Jelen and Dan Gentry to explore how digital design is transforming the built environment.Listen Now -
S3E4: HVAC Legends: Mick Schwedler’s 40+ Year Legacy
Today, hosts Charlie Jelen and Dan Gentry are joined by an HVAC legend, Mick Schwedler.Listen Now -
S3E5: The Hottest (and Coldest) Takes of 2025
In this special end of year episode, hosts Charlie Jelen and Dan Gentry are flying solo and taking you on a tour of 2025’s hottest (and coldest) takes.Listen Now -
S3E6: District Energy Heat Pumps: Bigger, Hotter, Cleaner
Today, we’re wrapping season 3 with a deep dive into industrial high-temperature heat pumps.Listen Now
Season Four
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Trailer: We are SO back: Season 4 of Cool Air, Hot Takes
Hot takes, cool systems, and zero fluff—Season 4 of Cool Air, Hot Takes ™ from Trane is coming soon!Listen Now -
S4E1: The Hottest Takeaways from AHR 2026
Charlie and Dan are back in the studio, fresh off the floor at AHR 2026, where the Cool Air, Hot Takes™ booth was open for business, t-shirts were flying, and the industry had lots to say.Listen Now -
S4E2: Quiet by Design: Noise Control Innovation
Today on Cool Air, Hot Takes™, Charlie Jelen and Dan Gentry sit down with Mike Dawson, VP of Sales at Parklane Mechanical, a company that's been solving industrial noise problems for over 30 years.Listen Now -
S4E3: The AI Race: HVAC’s Biggest Stress Test
Today on Cool Air, Hot Takes™, hosts Charlie Jelen and Dan Gentry sit down with Matt Caldwell, Director of AI & Cloud Data Centers at Hyper.Listen Now -
S4E4: Inside Trane’s 100-Year HVAC Training Legacy
Today on Cool Air, Hot Takes™, hosts Charlie Jelen and Dan Gentry celebrate a milestone: Trane's Graduate Training Program turns 100.Listen Now -
S4E5: Igniting HVAC Careers at the Heavy Metal Summer Experience
On this episode of Cool Air, Hot Takes™, hosts Charlie and Dan sit down with Angie Simon, PE, president and co-founder of the Heavy Metal Summer Experience.Listen Now -
S4E6: Behind the Hood: Restaurant HVAC Design
Today on Cool Air, Hot Takes™, hosts Charlie Jelen and Dan Gentry sit down with Frank Kohout, a 35-year HVAC engineer veteran who spent a big chunk of his career at McDonald's Global.Listen Now
Season Five
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Did You Miss Us? Cool Air, Hot Takes is back for Season 5!
Your favorite Midwestern duo is back in the studio! Charlie and Dan are cranking Season 5 of Cool Air, Hot Takes into high gear, and there’s a lot to unpack.Listen Now -
S5E1: The 2026 Factbook: Energy Trends Shaping HVAC
Today, Charlie and Dan speak with Lisa Jacobson, a 20-year energy policy veteran, to unpack the 2026 Sustainable Energy in America Factbook, the annual data-driven snapshot of the U.S. energy landscape.Listen Now
Contact Us
We Want to Hear from You!
You can also email us at coolair.hottakes@trane.com with your hot takes and questions, leave us a comment, rate or review us on YouTube, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
Cool Air, Hot Takes™ is a Trane Commercial HVAC podcast exploring bold innovations, emerging trends, and game-changing new technology in HVAC and energy management. Follow for new episodes regularly and stream us wherever you get your podcasts.