I just watched some video about Yakutsk Siberia which is meant to be the coldest city in the world. Thought “Those poor bastards, wonder what they need to wear indoors when it is -40 outside.”
Turns out a pissing tank top and PJ bottoms. We really need to start demanding better things in this country don’t we?
I’m also reading a book about coal mining. All the unpaid labour, minimising wages and dodgy things the bosses did then still happens now. Now I’m not a tankie so don’t get the wrong idea here. But why are we all okay living like this I don’t get it? Why is the UK population so forgiving at living it shit conditions.
Also I’m going to jump in before anyone says no insulation keeps you cold in the summer. Insulation works both ways, it can keep heat out or it can keep heat in. It’s better in the summer and in the winter.
Siberia video in question:
https://youtu.be/K0z7Avc9ZtY?si=_KTob2YYMn2HLwkv
Also I hope I havent broken any rules. I can’t see any. This seems mostly news posts but I guess text posts are allowed? Sorry if not.
I am pretty confident that if someone in the UK wants to build a house with Yakutsk-level amounts of insulation, that’s an option. But the UK doesn’t get Yakutsk-level temperature extremes – what it makes sense to do differs.
Out here in California, I am sure that the earthquake resistance of our houses is probably way higher than that of most houses in the UK. But…we also get large earthquakes on a not-wildly-infrequent basis, so it kind of has a need to be that way. You could go build a British house that could stand up to that, but what’s the point? The UK doesn’t get huge earthquakes, and it costs more to do that.
Same thing for wildfires. We have a bunch of restrictions on things like growing foliage near buildings. The UK doesn’t really have a serious problem with fires, so the need to mitigate fire risk is much-less-serious.
On the other side of things, I’d bet that a lot of places in the UK are far more-capable at dealing with snow than where I am. Lot of flat roofs that would deal poorly with snow buildup here.
People in the uk don’t build houses unless they are loaded.
They either more likely rent a house that has the worst insulation imaginable or they buy a house that’s 100+ years old, or they buy a new house which is built be a developer and has a reputation for being worse quality than a 100 year old house. Plenty of people in this country live by the phrase “I’d never buy a new house” new heard anyone say they wouldn’t buy an old house.