21-05-2025
American expat exposes major flaw in Aussie homes: 'Everyone cops it'
Australia is generally considered to be a warm country, but most residents agree the winters can be bitterly cold, especially inside their own homes. Many will do anything they can to keep themselves warm — trying various internet hacks or simply living in their dressing gowns for many months of the year.
With winter just around the corner, and temperatures seemingly dropping every day, an American expat living in Melbourne has exposed a major flaw with Aussie homes that makes them one of the worst in the world when it comes to one big issue.
John Pabon, who has lived in Melbourne for the past six years, has called out Aussie homes for failing to meet minimum indoor temperature standards as outlined by the World Health Organisation. What's worse, nowhere in the country is seemingly immune to feeling the cold in winter, with Pabon telling Yahoo, "everywhere in Australia cops it".
"Australian homes are among the coldest in the world according to the UN," Pabon explained.
The World Health Organisation outlines that the recommended minimum temperature inside a home is 18 degrees Celsius, but startlingly, more than 80 per cent of Aussie homes fall short of this requirement, with average winter temperatures in Australia being 16.5 degrees, and some homes in our coldest states averaging just 10.9, according to a study by the Australian Centre for Housing Research.
Pabon told Yahoo he moved to Melbourne six years ago after spending a decade living in China and was astounded by how cold it truly was — forcing the sustainability consultant to wear a robe all day and have the heaters on to keep warm.
"In Shanghai, you can deal with the house being chilly," he said of the developing country. "But coming here, I didn't think I'd have to go through the exact same thing."
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Speaking of Australia's homes, he described them as "leaky" with "substandard construction" and "the insulation is not right". Addressing the root cause of the issue would be a "massive amount of money".
This fact leaves vulnerable Aussies, including those who are older, have a disability and those facing housing insecurity are at higher risk.
The finding is based on a sample of 100 homes across New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia. Residents tracked household temperatures during a winter period in 2022. One Adelaide Hills resident even told the ABC it was warmer in her fridge than the rest of the house.
Cold indoor temperatures can make other problems, such as mould worse, and can even affect our mental health.
"This actually has detrimental effects," Pabon said. "If you're cold, you'll be miserable, but if you're a vulnerable person or younger or sick, a cold house with rising damp won't be amazing."
Pabon said some of the tools he's used to keep warm in winter in a cold Melbourne house include a door snake, or something to block out air leaks.
"Some people have put things on their windows," he explained. Last year, one Bunnings shopper revealed a clever hack using bubble wrap to insulate their windows.
He also advised "heating yourself first" before trying to warm the room with the right clothing and blankets.
Pabon isn't the only person to decry Australia's cold winters, with Canadian expat previously marvelling at the way Aussies cope with the drop in temperature. Alexandra Tuohey pointed out that there are three specific clothing items, which she dubbed "indoor thermal wear", that many Aussies buy and wear inside their homes to brave the cold in ill-equipped housing.
"The Australian homes are so cold that they actually invented their own new type of clothing, indoor thermal wear," she said on social media. The items include the Oodie, ugg boots and a puffer jacket.
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