Could White be the new Green? When it comes to your roof, it is!
With the temperatures here in Los Angeles starting to creep up and the summer months lurking just around the corner, I got to thinking about something that I had heard about a few years back. White Roof?
From Energy Secretary Steven Chu in a CNN report back in 2009, “Whitening the world’s roofs and roads would have the same effect on global warming as removing all the world’s cars for 11 years.”
From Bill Clinton’s Newsweek piece titled, “It’s Still The Economy, Stupid”, June 2011, he had this to say – Look at the tar roofs covering millions of American buildings. They absorb huge amounts of heat when it’s hot. And they require more air conditioning to cool the rooms. Mayor Bloomberg started a program to hire and train young people to paint New York’s roofs white. A big percentage of the kids have been able to parlay this simple work into higher-skilled training programs or energy-related retrofit jobs. (And, believe it or not, painting the roof white can lower the electricity use by 20 percent on a hot day!)
Proponents of the idea tout other advantages—reflective surfaces also reduce temperatures in urban “heat islands,” and reduce the need for air-conditioning, which in turn reduces the demand for electricity, which generates its own greenhouse-gas emissions.
Al Gore, Mayor Bloomberg, and others put a final coat on a new white roof for a warehouse in Long Island City. (Courtesy Office of the Mayor)
Mayor Bloomberg in New York said this “It’s such a simple concept—anyone who has ever gotten dressed in the summer knows it—light-colored surfaces absorb less heat than darker surfaces do,” Bloomberg said from a factory rooftop in Long Island City. “Coating rooftops with reflective, white paint can reduce roof temperatures by as much as 60 degrees and indoor temperatures by 10 to 20 degrees.” Gore thanked the mayor for keeping the city “at the forefront of enacting innovative policies that reduce our carbon footprint.”
So, can painting roofs white save you money and cut down greenhouse gases? I believe it can.
According to Chu white roofs have three major benefits:
1. It keeps buildings cooler, reducing the amount of energy required for air conditioning.
2. It reduces the so-call “heat island” effect, the heating up of entire urban areas which then causes other buildings in the vicinity to heat up, whether they are in direct contact with the sun or not.
3. A white roof or road will actually reflect the sun’s rays back into space, keeping the atmosphere cooler.
You might wonder what about the colder climates where one might think that a black roof would provide a heating benefit during the winter months?
There are several factors that say any winter heating benefit would be minimal:
In winter months -
- the angle of the sun is less direct, which also helps to minimize warming potential.
- many roofs are covered with snow for much of the winter, turning them “white” and eliminating any potential black roof heat gain.
- the energy required to air condition a building in the summer is usually considerably greater than the energy to heat it in the winter, making the potential for summer energy cost savings much greater
- white roofs can provide more than just energy savings
- a white roof saves money on roof repairs. Since black roofs become overheated in the sun, they are prone to warping and cracking. This means more roof repair. A white roof saves money on roof repair because it is more durable. A white roof can also extend the life of a buildings cooling equipment by decreasing use.
I am not saying that you must go out and replace or paint your roof, but if you’re doing new construction or in need of an upgrade, a white or lighter colored roof is a Green Alternative to the black asphalt shingles.
For more information on White Roofs, Materials, etc.. Cool Roof Resources
Something to think about!
Until next time, I’m the Go Green Guy saying “Think Green! Live Green! and Go Green America.”
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Category: Go Green Construction, Go Green Home, Uncategorized
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This seems to have merit. although I have to wonder if all the rooftops go to white, which is very reflective, what does that do to the brightness in the area? Will windows need to be tinted to avoid the extra reflection? I mean think about when you’re driving and there is a semi that’s shiny white. Depending on the time of day, the light can be reflected back at the driver, causing vision to be impaired. Is this a valid concern? I don’t know but before all roofs go white, it seems a study should be done to see if that’s the actual result.
I suppose this is true to some extent, but it will not be like a mirror, have look around, there are a lot of white roofs now. I live in Los Angeles and have never noticed a white roof bothering me while driving and I have been on many roofs that over look white roofs in the hills, never even gave it a thought, didn’t have any problem with it. America is just catching on to what people in the Middle East and Mediterranean regions have known for some time. Plus most any of the light that a roof will reflect will go up. In my opinion it should not be a problem.
White roofs are a good choice–when a green, i.e., vegetated roof is not an option. Green roofs should always be the first choice. In addition to providing the benefits of white roofs, they reduce and help clean stormwater runoff, clean and cool the air, and provide biohabitat. Plus, they can provide an amenity for building tenants, and they’ve also been shown to increase surrounding property values because of the improved view. And I didn’t even mention the fact that green roofs significantly prolong the life of the roof. You can conservatively skip one or two roof replacement cycles, since the layer of growing media and vegetation protects the roof from the UV rays and heat/cold extremes that cause them to deteriorate. Somewhat higher costs up front, but significant savings over the long term.