Green Roof And Cool Roof

Green roofs use soil and vegetation as living insulation.

Green roof and cool roof.

By doing this cool roofs allow for a more comfortable and controlled indoor environment. Both reduce building energy use for heating and or cooling. Green roofs may not reflect as much as a cool roof but do have other benefits such as evapotranspiration which cools the plants and the immediate area around the plants aiding in lowering rooftop temperatures but increasing humidity naturally. Although cool roofing is one of the most significant green technologies today it is not a new concept.

While the term cool roof is sometimes used to describe any roofing surface that is cooler than a standard rooftop green certification programs such as leed energy star the u s. Green roofs are also referred to as eco roofs oikosteges vegetated roofs living roofs greenroofs and vcp h 8 horizontal vegetated complex partitions. Cool roofs are even cheaper than green roofs only costing 0 75 to 1 50 per square foot and a single ply cool roof membrane usually ranges from 1 50 to 3 per square foot according to epa gov. Green roofs are ideal for urban buildings with flat or shallow pit roofs and can include anything from basic plant cover to a garden.

Cool roofs green roofs and pv are all excellent options for improving the environmental performance of a building. Using green roofs in cities or other built environments with limited vegetation can moderate the heat island effect particularly during the day. Green building council and the department of energy building technology program base their respective cool roof credentials on a roofing material s ability to reflect the sun solar reflectance and release absorbed heat emissivity. Green roofs provide shade remove heat from the air and reduce temperatures of the roof surface and surrounding air.

A green roof or rooftop garden is a vegetative layer grown on a rooftop. Cool roofs reflect sunlight and heat back into the atmosphere while green roofs help absorb the sunlight and heat before it can enter the building. A cool roof prevents heat absorption by reflecting the sun s heat and then emitting its radiation back into the atmosphere. Which system or combination of systems is most appropriate for an individual roof will need to be evaluated on a case by case basis.

Cool roofs reflect solar energy. Moreover some green roofs need maintenance such as regular watering.