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I agree with your take. This is my honest followup question: can eliminating gas alternatives from the equation help make electric heat pumps more cheep/availa

I agree with your take. This is my honest followup question: can eliminating gas alternatives from the equation help make electric heat pumps more cheep/available? It seems like in the short-term it could make things tricky, but long term it feels like competition in the heat pump market should result in better products and lower prices... I am not so naive as to think that government interference in a market will inevitably cause a good result, but it seems like properly targeted regulation can help trigger a market shift that is ultimately beneficial to the environment and to consumers...

DubiousPusher 4y ago
Elimination of competition usually has the opposite effect. Subsidies can have the effect you describe. Heat pumps have been subsidized for some time and they have simultaneously improved leaps and bounds over a short period. This subsidy is expanded under a law just signed into effect by the president. Even without these subsidies, heat pumps are more cost effective than natural gas in most cases. There is in fact almost no good reason to ban gas appliances at this point as they are going to decline rapidly without a ban. The Sierra Club in general is made up of out of touch rich people. This is 100% them letting their privellege flag fly. Edit: One thing I should've noted is that besides green house gas emissions there is a credible concern around the pollution produced by gas burning appliances. Several studies have shown a link between premature cardiovascular deaths and residential gas burning equipment. The issues are particularly pronounced among individuals with asthma. We should probably cease to use residential gas appliances in the near future but the way the market is going, a ban seems unnecessary and the imposition of such a ban would place serious burdens on the poor.

DubiousPusher 4y ago

Elimination of competition usually has the opposite effect. Subsidies can have the effect you describe. Heat pumps have been subsidized for some time and they have simultaneously improved leaps and bounds over a short period. This subsidy is expanded under a law just signed into effect by the president. Even without these subsidies, heat pumps are more cost effective than natural gas in most cases. There is in fact almost no good reason to ban gas appliances at this point as they are going to decline rapidly without a ban. The Sierra Club in general is made up of out of touch rich people. This is 100% them letting their privellege flag fly. Edit: One thing I should've noted is that besides green house gas emissions there is a credible concern around the pollution produced by gas burning appliances. Several studies have shown a link between premature cardiovascular deaths and residential gas burning equipment. The issues are particularly pronounced among individuals with asthma. We should probably cease to use residential gas appliances in the near future but the way the market is going, a ban seems unnecessary and the imposition of such a ban would place serious burdens on the poor.