Reply #23: How much do you think it would cost to insulate the average Japanese house?

[Art_from_Ark]

Lots. I know someone who actually works for an insulation company in Yurakucho. Their main customers are in Niigata, Tohoku and Hokkaido-- in other words, the REALLY cold areas where people will fork over the cost of insulation. However, the cost is still prohibitive to most people outside of those areas. No one in my neighborhood is going to fork over a million yen or more to get their house insulated, and another million or more to get central heating installed-- especially when they can heat their home with kerosene for less than 10,000 yen/month during the 3 or 4 months each year that they need it. And we have pretty decent insulation in our house-- plus some really big south-facing windows-- plus a super energy-efficient air conditioner/heater-- and our electric bill is still high because we have to pay more for extra amperage. It wouldn't be worth it to invest a million yen or more for central heating to maybe save 5000 yen a month on heating costs for 4 months out of the year.

As for "nitpicking", YOU'RE the one who made the claim about central heating-- I'm just explaining why central heating is not really an option for most Japanese with existing homes outside of the really cold areas.

Regarding the "technical overlords bit"-- I was responding to your comments about technology as they regard central heating and signature stamps in Japan. The Japanese do excel in certain areas of technological development. In other areas they may be a bit behind. The problems with these particular reactors were both the earthquake, which cut off the power, and the tsunami, which inundated the damn things and caused an unprecedented type of disaster. Why wouldn't the Japanese seek outside help in dealing with this situation?