3 ms·

What's the insulation and air sealing opportunity like in Europe? I wonder how much of a permanent reduction can be done with retrofits for places that haven't

What's the insulation and air sealing opportunity like in Europe? I wonder how much of a permanent reduction can be done with retrofits for places that haven't had them done yet.

zokier 4y ago
EU is and has been actively driving improvements on building energy efficiency: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_Performance_of_Buildings_Directive_2010#Proposed_revision_of_EPBD_(2021) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_Performance_of_Building...
bluGill 4y ago
There is a lot of opportunity, though I'm not sure how much is possible. Some old historical buildings are very hard to make better, and the law may not even allow the required renovations. However Europe is a large place. Some places are much better than others. Some people live in a "passive house" already and so have no opportunity - or need - to do better, while others live in a house that may as well be a tent for as bad as it leaks. There are places where almost every house is well insulated and so people living there think all of Europe is in great shape, meanwhile the next country can be in terrible shape.
MayeulC 4y ago
I am under the impression that a lot of people live in rented flats, and good luck having the landlords put some insulation and have the apartment unavailable for some time instead of just renting it to a new person. Although it seems F and G flats will be illegal to rent soon in my city, so that could help. Meanwhile, I've had single pane windows in most of my flats. Can't wait to move somewhere better insulated (I can hear the wind hissing through small gaps in the sliding windows right now). This is in a major city in France.
lozenge 4y ago
I'm in the UK and it's famously bad due to the age of the housing (lots of it predates WWII or was built cheaply just after WWII). Multiple successive governments have started grants to share the cost of insulation, however these come with onerous paperwork requirements, complex financing schemes, accreditation schemes for contractors, and then are cancelled 18-24 months in due to low takeup. It's gotten to the point where the small companies that provide these services don't even try to join the schemes because they know it won't work out.
pyrale 4y ago
Insulation can be done pretty easily on most old buildings, but air sealing is much harder.

What's the insulation and air sealing opportunity like in Europe? I wonder how much of a permanent reduction can be done with retrofits for places that haven't had them done yet.

zokier 4y ago

EU is and has been actively driving improvements on building energy efficiency: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_Performance_of_Buildings_Directive_2010#Proposed_revision_of_EPBD_(2021) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_Performance_of_Building...

bluGill 4y ago

There is a lot of opportunity, though I'm not sure how much is possible. Some old historical buildings are very hard to make better, and the law may not even allow the required renovations. However Europe is a large place. Some places are much better than others. Some people live in a "passive house" already and so have no opportunity - or need - to do better, while others live in a house that may as well be a tent for as bad as it leaks. There are places where almost every house is well insulated and so people living there think all of Europe is in great shape, meanwhile the next country can be in terrible shape.

MayeulC 4y ago

I am under the impression that a lot of people live in rented flats, and good luck having the landlords put some insulation and have the apartment unavailable for some time instead of just renting it to a new person. Although it seems F and G flats will be illegal to rent soon in my city, so that could help. Meanwhile, I've had single pane windows in most of my flats. Can't wait to move somewhere better insulated (I can hear the wind hissing through small gaps in the sliding windows right now). This is in a major city in France.

lozenge 4y ago

I'm in the UK and it's famously bad due to the age of the housing (lots of it predates WWII or was built cheaply just after WWII). Multiple successive governments have started grants to share the cost of insulation, however these come with onerous paperwork requirements, complex financing schemes, accreditation schemes for contractors, and then are cancelled 18-24 months in due to low takeup. It's gotten to the point where the small companies that provide these services don't even try to join the schemes because they know it won't work out.

pyrale 4y ago

Insulation can be done pretty easily on most old buildings, but air sealing is much harder.