Home & Garden...

Not too long ago we were mainly seeing green roofs on businesses. Currently, there are plenty of green roofs on residential structures as well.

Now, green roofing is a super in-depth topic. We'll go over a few basics points in this post, and later I'll do more on green roofs. Green roofing is a pet architect technique of mine, I love the whole concept, I love the look, and I never get tired of talking about them.

Why have a green roof:

Green roofs have all kinds of benefits for residential homes, such as...

• Reduces cooling costs in the summer.
• Improves air quality.
• Stormwater management: A green roof retains 50%-90% of a typical rainfall and some homes are even set-up to catch the collected rainwater for use, making it double useful
• Creation of a natural habitat for plants and animals.
• Reduced dust, smog, and noise levels, while returning a sense of calm and relaxation to most people's lives.
• Longer roof life expectancy: A green roof helps to offer protection from both physical abuse and extreme weather.

Most importantly, green roof systems allow for green space to co-exist with architecture. In the past it seemed like we all had a front yard. With home plots becoming smaller and smaller, we don't always have a green space attached to, or even near our homes. For apartment or condo dwellers, it's rare to have a yard or garden space.

There's a huge loss for people when they fail to live around green living plants, it's not healthy, and green roofs gain back some of that green space in places we never knew were possible. It's really extraordinary.

There are many more benefits to a green roof residential system. A local green roof retailer can fill you in, or you can start reading all the great info offered at GreenRoofs.com.

How can you get your own green roof?:

You have three typical options for installing a green roof on your home.

• Work with a company who specializes in green roof applications.
• Work with an architect who has experience with green roofs for residences - although, it's likely a good architect with commercial experience could help you as well.
• Do it yourself.

There's more to simply laying a green roof down. If you'd like to do it yourself, there are actually some resources you can use, like Green Grid's, DIY green-roofing kit. If you're interested in the kit, you'll need to actually contact Green Grid because they don't market the kit as a DYI on their site. I'm guessing to avoid liability. Much can go wrong with a do it yourself green roof.

You need to know how much weight your roof can take, because plants and soil add up. You have to have an almost perfectly flat roof (rare). You'll need to self-teach about maintaining the roof, safety while installing, and more. Later I might go into more details on a do it yourself method, but it's a long topic, so we're not going to do that now. You can see a review of the kit at This Old House - but keep in mind that these guys are professionals.

Tomorrow we'll look at what professional green roof installers can offer home owners.

[Photo via: Offbeat Homes]