Hacker News Reader

Comment by Swizec | Hacker News Reader

> In defense of Californians, most of us rarely, if ever, turn on a heater and most homes here don't have AC

Then why on earth was I freezing my balls off in Menlo Park this November? The weeks before we realised our house even had heating were miserable. And even afterwards, as soon as the heaters weren't blowing hot air, or you were more than 3ft away, you were instantly cold and miserable.

View on HN

Had you previously lived in more equatorial climes? Temperature preference really is about what you're used to. Some years ago when I visited India in January/February, my friends' relatives in Rajasthan were shivering in sweaters and coats while my friend and I were perfectly comfortable in short sleeves.

No, I previously lived in a climate that goes up to 100F in summer and down to 5F in winter. But I've always lived in a proper house with heating and insulation and whatnot.

New Zealand's North Island has a similar problem. A typical house has cheap construction with thin exterior walls, unfinished crawl space with exposed soil, no insulation and no heat pump. Coupled with a damp climate 5-25C, in the winter one gets heavy condensation, black mold, chills, and the fingers don't work.

I bumped into a guy here from Northern Germany who said he's never been so cold as in a kiwi house in the winter.

The NZ government is trying to change minds, but I still see houses going up with empty wall cavities and no air barrier. But then, the natives wear shorts and tees outside in 5 degree weather all winter. So, maybe its just me.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com