Insulation, should there be a national law?

Question

Instead of leaving it up to every city and county to adopt the building codes of their choice, should we have a national law that requires all buildings that are heated or air conditioned to meet some sort of insulation requirement. I have see many new homes being built with minimal insulation which is something that is not easily seen when the home is completed. We are demanding that cars get better mileage to save fuel but what about the energy that is being lost due to poor insulation?

Answer 1

No, government mandates always cause more problems than they solve.  Let the market decide.

Answer 2

The government needs to stay out of any thing I do, period.

My new house will be fossil fuel free.  There is enough dead wood on my land that I won't need to cut down a live tree, ever.

Answer 3

Now there might be a reason for a state or provincial law that requires some standards in installation, but rally, is one law appropriate for Hawaii and Alaska? Hawaii might legitimately choose to forgo insulation. Puerto Rico the same.

But really, my house has its north east and west walls burried in the earth. They are not cold in winter nor hot in summer... why should a mandarin in Ottawa dictate that I should insulate them?

And, if I must insulate my walls, must I insulate them from the air inside or the earth outside? They are exposed to the inside to use the walls and the earth as a heat sink for solar heating. Do national mandarins have any understanding of my strategy?

Answer 4

Why not just let the market work?  Give the people a modicum of credit.  I'll make my own decisions--Thanks for caring though.