roofingwiz's blog

Trucks and SUVs, coal burning power plants, and manufacturing industry pollutants are not the only CO 2 / carbon footprint contributors. Residential, commercial, and industrial buildings are also contributing a great deal to overall carbon footprint. Poorly insulated buildings consume vast amounts of energy, natural resources, and contribute to greenhouse gases affect. One of the ways to combat environmental degradation associated with poorly constructed buildings, is to use green building technology in retrofitting of existing buildings and constructing new buildings using green building practices.

Green building practices encourage environmental responsibility through the use of sustainable building materials in residential and commercial retrofit and new construction projects. The roof structure of the building is not an exception when it comes to in green building design. In fact, roof constructed according to green building practices can earn LEED green building credits with the U.S. green building council.

As an example, consider Whole Foods Market place, one of the U.S. top organic food retailers has embraced green building technology by building a state of the art store made of aluminum and green building materials. The roof design incorporates vegetated roofing technology by using easy to integrate green roofing containers containing local vegetation. Green roofing design provides energy savings, insulation, and combats urban heat island affect.

In order for a roofing system to qualify for green building credits it must meet solar reflectivity index of a minimum of 78 percents for flat roof systems and 29 percents for sloped roofs. Solar reflectivity index is assigned by cool-roof rating council. SRI incorporates solar reflectivity and thermal emissivity.

Metal roofs provide a wide variety of sustainable roofing options including standing-seam metal roofs made with long lasting and environmentally friendly metals such as aluminum, zinc, steel and copper. Contemporary metal roofs contain up to 50% post consumer content and are fully recyclable. Kynar coated metal roofing panels feature solar reflective paint finishes that help keep the roof cooler in warm seasons.

The use of metal in a residential, commercial and industrial roofing aides in reducing building's carbon footprint, and provides long lasting and reliable roofing solution that is also U.S green building council accredited.

In a typical residential re-roofing situation, a cool-roof rated galvanized or galvalume steel metal roofing system can offer longevity, durability, energy savings, and earn green building credits for existing buildings and new construction. Modern steel shingle metal roofing systems are available in wide variety of cool-roof rated metal roofing colors that literally reflect solar radiant heat, reduce air conditioning load and provide energy savings.

For homeowners whose roof is covered with a flat roof, installing PVC based cool flat roof membrane similar to IB roofs in performance will provide significant energy savings, reliability, and long lasting roofing solution. Yes, PVC and green combination may seem counter intuitive, but PVC roofs can last three times longer than EPDM roofs and can be recycled when the roof has served its purpose. Certain PVC roofing systems are designed to withstand standing / ponds of water, which means that they can be used for vegetated green roofing systems.

It's almost summer, which means that season is in the full swing. Many homeowners are interested in remodeling their homes in a green, and environmentally responsible way. Green home improvements and energy efficient remodeling are in the hearts and minds of many homeowners this year, especially because the U.S. economic stimulus and recovery act has appropriated funds encouraging green home improvements. Homeowners can receive up to 1500 dollars in tax credits for qualifying energy efficient improvements. With that in mind, I would like to present my top 10 energy efficient home improvements for 2010.

Energy efficient windows - 1

This is the first upgrade that comes to mind because older windows tend to have a lot of problems due to lack of proper insulation, aged window frames with the effects of wear and tear. These little things contribute to energy inefficiency resulting from air leaks, and inadequate insulating properties of the older windows. I recommend installing a minimum of double pane Low-E windows as a replacement for the single pane windows.

Solar mass thermal windows - 2

Some of the latest green building technology innovations, had brought us a new product; thermal mass solar windows engineered to collect solar thermal energy to warm the living space in the winter. In the summer, when the sun is high and with use of appropriate shading, thermal mass solar windows actually help insulate the living space of your home and keep it cool. The special windows are designed as building blocks that are easiest to integrate with the new construction, but they can still be used in some remodeling projects.

Thermal mass solar windows

Energy efficient insulation - 3

Most homes in the United States are not sufficiently insulated. By installing energy efficient insulation, and properly insulating walls, ceilings, attic space, and living space of your home, you can gain as much as 60% improvement in energy efficiency of your home.

Energy efficient roof - 4

If your home needs a re roofing job, then choosing to replace your existing the roof with a metal roof can Provide up to 35% in additional energy savings, increase the short term and long-term value of your home, and finally metal roof can be the last roof you ever have to install. If your roof is flat, you can still install energy efficient flat roof by IB roof systems.

Energy efficient metal roof

Solar roofing upgrade - 5

Would you like to take your energy efficiency to yet another level? Why not upgrade your existing metal roof with solar roofing panels? Standing-seam metal roofs can be integrated with thin film photovoltaic solar laminates that convert solar energy into electricity. Even if you do not have a standing-seam metal roof, investing in solar systems can provide you with significant energy savings and in some cases, completely make your home independent of the electric grid.

Solar panel systems upgrades - 6

Many states are providing some very attractive and financially feasible solar rebates. Solar systems are rated by the number of kilowatts of electricity they can produce per hour. It is rumored that state governments will make investing into solar systems even more lucrative and financially feasible. You can learn more about solar prices, and calculate the cost of installing solar panel systems at solar-calculator.org.

Solar hot water systems - 7

Solar hot water technology has been available for years, but ongoing technological advances has greatly improved their quality, and longevity. Using the energy of the sun to warm up the water is another great way to take advantage of alternative energy innovations.

Energy efficient siding and metal wall panels - 8

This is yet another building envelope energy efficient upgrade that homeowners can take advantage of. Energy efficient siding, or metal wall panels can help further reduce the energy costs of your home and provide long-term reliable protection against the harsh climate and nature's elements.

Geothermal heat and cooling - 9

Geothermal energy uses a special technology that leverages differences in temperature deep underground, and surface temperature. Homeowners can choose to install geothermal heat units in their backyards, which can lower the energy costs by 40 percents.

Energy efficient lighting - 10

Led lighting technology stands for light emitting diodes. Led lighting uses very little energy compared to fluorescent and incandescent bulbs. Led lights are very cool in terms of temperature, which means that energy goes towards production of the light and does not get wasted to generate heat. Led lights last significantly longer than conventional lighting, which makes it a viable energy efficient upgrade for your home despite the high initial cost.

Further reading:

Green building information - learn about green building practices, materials and sustainability.

Energy efficient roofing materials - compare and contrast conventional roofing materials vs.  Energy efficient PVC flat roofs and green metal roofing.

Green roof options - discover elements that make up a green roof.

Roofing prices - survey of residential roof prices in the North Eastern United States.

Roof calculator - estimates roof and prices for any roof type.

Did you know that metal plays a quintessential role in green building and sustainable design. Metal is a sustainable building material that stands up to the elements in the harshest of climates and even in marine and salty water environments. Metal is a fully recyclable building material often containing 30% and greater post consumer content. Metal roofs, walls, and construction materials can be reused again at the end of it service life, when recycled. Metal is 100% recyclable at the end of its useful life.

In the United States, metal is gaining popularity as a green building material for new construction and retrofit applications. Some examples of use of metal in the United States include metal buildings, metal walls and metal cladding, metal roofing, and metal framing. Despite the growing popularity of metal in the United States, it still has long way to go.

In Europe, metal has been used for centuries and has gained undisputed acceptance as a durable, energy efficient, and long lasting building material. For instance, over 70% of all residential buildings in Europe are covered with zinc roofing. Europeans have long realized that metal such as zinc can easily last as long as 100 years providing a durable and reliable protection for the roofs. This could be the reason why over 80% of all buildingss in Paris are still covered with zinc roofing.

Some would argue that zinc is too expensive to use and residential and commercial construction. But this is only one way of looking at things, the truth is that if you consider the cost of zinc over its life cycle, it turns out that it's one of the cheapest building materials. Factor in that zinc requires very little energy to produce, and that zinc is 100% recyclable at the end of its service life.

In the United States, the roofing industry is still predominantly producing asphalt shingles, which cannot be recycled and inevitably ends up in our landfills. Yes, asphalt shingles may be cheap, but it doesn't last very long. The industry average expected lifespan for an asphalt shingle roof is just 17 years. In hotter climates such as Florida, asphalt shingle roofs can fail as early as in 10 years.

In the age of environmental awareness, building sustainably will result in buildings that last significantly longer and are good for the environment and the people. Integrating the metal into the construction of the building envelope and roofs can provide tremendous energy savings, cost of maintenance and repair savings, and result in an overall greener and more energy efficient building.

Granted, not every homeowner can afford the expense of initial investment in the roof such as zinc or copper, but there are less expensive alternatives; steel and aluminum roofing. Modern steel roofing is coated with a layer of zinc and aluminum, in which protects it from oxidation and elements. Further, steel roofing profiles are protected with high quality Kynar 500 paint, which reflects solar radiant heat and provides significant energy savings. The beauty of metal roofing is that it can last 50 years and longer requiring no roof replacements or expensive roof maintenance. Metal roof also retains its value and helps home owners save money on cooling costs.

The pros of metal roofing surpass the higher cost of initial investment, and metal roof pays for itself over time. It's good for your pocket and the environment. Although, it may not be so good for the asphalt shingle roofing manufacturers, but the things have to change if we want to make our planet greener.