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Badly built housing propels the heat pandemic in Asia's cities (www.abc.net.au)

submitted 2 weeks ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

9 comments fedilink hide all child comments

It is a typical summer’s afternoon in Gujarat, India. Women and children are listless as they swelter in their homes in the 34-degree Celsius heat.

It’s even hotter outside. Families that have moved into affordable housing units built in the last few years are finding their comfort and health have not been sufficiently considered in the design and construction of the new dwellings.

There are similar issues in Indonesia — where one study showed most household energy use was dedicated to trying unsuccessfully to stay cool — and Australia, where tenants in rental properties were regularly experiencing indoor temperatures above 30C in summer.

We are experiencing a heat pandemic, and it’s exacerbated by lousy buildings.

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[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 weeks ago (8 children)

And that's why developed countries have building codes

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 weeks ago (6 children)

America has building codes but their houses are still badly insulated Mcmansions made out of cardboard and dreams. Just put an AC in it, that's good

[–] [email protected] 4 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (5 children)

I’m not sure why you’re downvoted. You perfectly described the 1960s-era shit box (barely insulated with three window air conditioners) I pay over $2,000 per month to live in in Los Angeles.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

You have 3?! I'm jelly.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (1 children)

You shouldn’t be. Ideally we’d have central air/heating or a heat pump. These window units I see cranking everywhere are absolute garbage for the environment.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) (1 children)

Central air was an insane waste in the more modern apartments I've lived in in LA. They try to build in features like vaulted ceilings and as you mentioned, no insulation. You end up not running it at all because its barely a few degrees cooler. These developers do not care about efficiency at all. At least with the wall units you can run it just in the area you're currently using for a shorter time.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 weeks ago

I suppose. But with no insulation the A/C has to work nonstop to keep the temperature at say, 78°F. You can start it off when it’s cool in the morning but by the time the real heat comes around the A/C is choking, unable to make any progress at actually cooling the space.

I’ve never understood this—why in an area with constant power outages and energy usage problems would this be the norm? It’s the same thing with dishwashers—we’re all still washing dishes by hand and wasting crazy amounts of water.

(Sorry, I could rant about this all day. Tired of living in the “tech” state where emergency vehicles can’t even change the traffic lights for themselves.)

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