Background
Green Roofs and green roofing systems are rarely the colour green but are part of a building that takes the environment into account to save money, resources or both. Green roofs can be broken down into the categories of:
Solar Roofs
Cool Roofs
Garden Roofs
Solar Roofs
Solar roofs harness the power of the sun to provide heating or electricity. A solar roof can use special collector units to heat water for hot water within the home or to warm swimming pools to extend the annual swimming season. The other form of solar roof uses a roof mounted array of photovoltaic panels to generate electricity. The electricity produce can be a stand alone unit that powers juat the building it is mounted to or it may be connected to the power grid where it will feed excess electricity.
Benefits of Solar Roofs
Solar or photovoltaic energy offers the following benefits:
Fixed cost once system is installed
In most areas can be grid attached and excess power sold with good return in investment
Highly reliable with low maintenance
Silent and emissions free electricity generation
Cool Roofs
Cool roofs are the simplest form of green roof. Although all roofing materials reflect a certain amount of heat, a cool roof is one that will both reflect
the light and UV rays from the sun while retaining very little heat. A cool roofs are made from materials that are highly reflective and highly emissive. These properties are retained with little maintenance for the life of the roof.
Benefits of Cool Roofs
The benefits of cool roofs include:
Long life cycle
Long warranties and low maintenance
Reduction in heat absorption from urban areas
Lower requirement for heating and air conditioning
Recyclable and can be made from renewable resources
Garden Roofs
Garden roofs have various plants and vegetation growing on the roof of a building. A garden roof will insulate the building below it while blending into the surrounding environment, and depending on the plants used, may provide food for the building occupants.
Benefits of Garden Roofs
Garden roof systems have the following benefits:
Heat and sound insulation
Energy conservation
Reduction in heat absorption from urban areas
Lower requirement for heating and air conditioning
Control of stormwater runoff and erosion
Improvement of water and air quality
Increased service life of the roof
Increased urban wildlife habitat
Improved urban aesthetics