I have solar, a powerwall battery, a high efficiency heat pump, and... a poorly insulated 70-year old home in Silicon Valley.
It can be wildly expensive to properly mitigate poor insulation: you need good air sealing, insulation around the entire building envelope, double or triple paned windows, and a different HVAC setup with dedicated fresh air ventilation. In other words, it requires a major remodel in some cases. Homes need to be built with energy efficiency as a top concern, and I wonder sometimes if that is going to require re-training and incentivizing the entire construction industry. Fewer than 1 in 10 contractors I talked to even knew what I was talking about when I asked for how they would do my project. "What's an ERV?" is a common question I heard. Many still think that gaps are good because "a house needs to breathe."
I have a 60 year old home and have made a huge dent in my winter therms and summer AC usage by simply adding some roof insulation and double-layer windows/sliding doors a few years ago.
Perfect is the enemy of good enough. You are not going to eliminate all gaps.
I have solar, a powerwall battery, a high efficiency heat pump, and... a poorly insulated 70-year old home in Silicon Valley.
It can be wildly expensive to properly mitigate poor insulation: you need good air sealing, insulation around the entire building envelope, double or triple paned windows, and a different HVAC setup with dedicated fresh air ventilation. In other words, it requires a major remodel in some cases. Homes need to be built with energy efficiency as a top concern, and I wonder sometimes if that is going to require re-training and incentivizing the entire construction industry. Fewer than 1 in 10 contractors I talked to even knew what I was talking about when I asked for how they would do my project. "What's an ERV?" is a common question I heard. Many still think that gaps are good because "a house needs to breathe."