New building codes benefit
owners of existing homes
Re: “With California’s high power rates, will all-electric homes be affordable?” (Mercurynews.com, Oct. 6):
In addition to the important issues raised in your Oct. 6 article about possible affordability problems created by new building codes, one positive outcome will be the tremendous benefit to owners of existing, older homes.
The cost of natural gas and electricity, will likely increase in the next few years. One viable way to reduce our utility usage is to make our existing buildings as efficient as possible, through better insulation, new windows, better mechanical systems and better lighting.
As cities take on tougher and tougher building codes for new construction, it encourages manufacturers, architects, builders and suppliers to develop even better ways of reducing the carbon footprint. Owners of older homes will benefit from a wider availability of new efficient options to replace our furnaces, roofs, air conditioners and windows.
Thank you for your continued coverage of proposed building codes leading to reductions in the carbon footprint.
Robert Whitehair
San Mateo
Submit your letter to the editor via this form
Read more Letters to the Editor
