The Details of a Vegetative Roof

Managers need to ensure proper design and installation by engaging a professional. Each roof is different, so managers should not rely on “boxed” systems.

Before installation of the overburden, managers should schedule a flood test of the system. Water should be at least 2 inches deep at all details. If a detail fails, the installer must retest it after repairs.

Vegetative roofs offer significant benefits related to sustainability that building owners and managers seek. But to ensure system longevity, managers must specify proper materials and detailing. Otherwise, the cost to repair or replace a leaking vegetative roof system dramatically reduces these sustainability benefits.

When specifying a vegetative roofing system, managers must consider system details carefully.

Base flashing. For conventional roofs, the top edge of the base flashing must be at least 8 inches above the membrane surface. For vegetative roofs, the top edge of the flashing system should be at least 8 inches above the top of the planting system.

Penetrations. For all roof systems, managers must minimize penetrations to reduce the potential for leaks. Due to access constraints and challenges, this issue is more important in vegetative roofs.

Gravel. Managers should specify that installers use gravel at perimeters and around penetrations and details so water can flow promptly away from these areas.

Drains. Managers need to specify dual-level drains to ensure water can drain from the top surface of the overburden and the waterproofing-membrane layer.

Planters. For plants with deep root structures, such as trees and shrubs, managers should specify independent planter boxes to separate the roots from the waterproofing system.

Never Too Early To Plan

Mark your calendars now, and make plans to come visit us at booth #609 at the 2012 Florida Building & Facility Maintenance Show! Just click on the link for details.

http://www.eliteemail.com/emview.cgi?c=146733&b=MA/2759067&u=167217866&ticket=53616c7465645f5f36feaaa4928e9fdba66cd2dca59a11e70e01cf6f888a162702b52496867efef3159b185b443eb3a9

See you there!

Pros and Cons of Vegetative Roofs

The decision to invest in green products and technologies requires understanding both the up front benefits and the longer-term impact. In other words, do energy savings and a smaller environmental impact during manufacturing and installation outweigh the effects of possibly having to replace the product after only a few years?

In specifying a vegetative roofing system, that balance is important because the impact of replacing a system is significant. Crews must completely remove overburden materials to replace or even repair the membrane system.

To successfully specify a vegetative roof and maximize its sustainability, maintenance and engineering managers need to understand the system’s many components, as well as the potential benefits and drawbacks.

BENEFITS OF VEGETATION
Vegetative roofing refers to plant materials installed over a weatherproofing system. These roofs provide many benefits to the building and environment:

Storm-water control. The planting system, including soil media, reduces the overall volume of run-off, the peak volume-rate requirements for drainage systems, and contaminants in run-off water — all of which reduce the demand on storm-water drainage and treatment systems.

Air quality. Increasing the amount of plantings in any area allows for natural air treatment, reducing airborne contaminants.

Energy savings. The planting system provides a buffer between ambient temperature and roof insulation, reducing the fluctuation in high and low daily temperatures, as well as the rate of temperature change. Both of these benefits result in reduced load on the building’s mechanical heating and cooling systems.

Service life. Assuming a reliable installation, vegetative roof-membrane systems have increased service life over conventional membranes because they are protected from ultraviolet (UV) rays. Vegetation covers the membrane and protects it from thermal-shock stresses.

Aesthetics and wellness. If a vegetative roof is visible and accessible, occupants and visitors can benefit from this exposure. Some research indicates access to nature scenes can increase productivity, as well as general health.

DISADVANTAGES
Although vegetative roofs offer many benefits, managers also must consider the disadvantages of such systems:

Maintenance. While conventional roofing membranes require periodic maintenance to repair membrane degradation, vegetative roofing requires periodic landscaping maintenance to remove unwanted weeds and other plants so they do not overtake and detract from the plantings.

Increased costs. Depending on the selected planting method — modular vs. built-in-place — or overburden system, a vegetative roof can cost up to twice as much as a conventional system.

Membrane access. If leaks occur, the planting or overburden systems cover the membrane system. Inspectors must remove this top layer to find and repair the cause of leaks. As with any system, this process is challenging because the interior leak might not align with the membrane breach.

Unwanted wildlife and insects. The planting systems provide suitable habitat for birds, insects, and other wildlife, which managers might not want. Managers might have to specify additional protection to prevent unwanted wildlife and insects from inhabiting the system.

Get Ready. Get Set. GO!

As we enjoyed time with our family this holiday season, we had opportunity to reflect on the things in life for which we are most grateful. Obviously, family and dear friends came to mind, along with the necessities of life that are so often taken for granted. We also found ourselves thinking of our loyal clients – those like you who have made every part of our journey and progress possible.

At this time, as we start a new year and strive to live up to the resolutions we set on New Year’s Eve, we’d like to take the opportunity to personally thank you for choosing us. We also want to make sure you know that RAMCON values your business and your opinions. One of the most rewarding parts of our job is talking with our clients. We love to hear stories of excellent service or surpassed expectations, as well as suggestions as to how we can improve. In fact, we discuss these recommendations every week and take action to correct any problems immediately. It’s made the world of a difference and poured the foundation for what we’ve accomplished.

In 2011, we installed over 3.3 million square feet of practically every type of roofing system imaginable. Our never ending commitment to quality remains stronger than ever. In 2011, we remained Florida’s only Firestone President’s Club winner council member, one of only 30 Johns Manville Pinnacle Council members in the world and maintain the highest accreditations by practically every major manufacturer. These awards signify our commitment to installing the best systems in the industry. We’ve installed roofs on some of the highest profile facilities in Florida, including:Tropicana Field, Busch Gardens, and Walt Disney World. We’ve logged over 4,200 hours of hands on training to continue to get better.

However, we’re not satisfied and certainly not done. This year, growth will continue rapidly. We are venturing into new markets; adding new arrays of services and enhancing our customer service features to give you live time data and reports on your facilities. You’ll never have to wonder when a technician will be at a facility, you’ll see it live. Want to know the status of a repair? It’s right at your fingertips. How about getting an instant report showing all conditions, logs and lifecycle of any roof in your portfolio? It’s all coming in 2012 with our custom designed application that’s nearing completion.

This is just one example of where we are headed. We’ll be moving into new frontiers to match our award winning quality, talented personnel and levels of customer service and interaction that are simply unmatched.
The truth is, in everything we build, the most important thing is our relationship with you. We sincerely thank you for taking this journey with us. Your loyalty and feedback is amazing and we owe you for every step of our progress. Have a great, prosperous New Year!

-The RAMCON Team

Toys For Tots

There is still one more day to bring in toys! Tomorrow, Friday, December 16th, we will be taking the toys to one of the Toys for Tots warehouses just after lunch. If you have anything you want to drop off in the morning, please feel free to come by and say hello!

Lower Energy Bills with Cool Roofs

Managers specifying a cool roof only a few years ago found a limited number of product options. Now, based on the growing demand in part by institutional and commercial facilities, managers can choose from among hundreds of cool products.

By reducing the amount of heat transferred to a building’s interior, cool roofs provide a number of additional benefits. These include lower energy bills and longer performance lives for roof systems, as well as cooling equipment.

The environment also benefits from cool roofs. By lowering facilities’ energy use, cool roofs cut down on air pollution — including carbon emissions, which contribute to global warming.

Managers also need to pay attention to the return on investment — an especially important consideration in tough economic times. While some cool-roofing options cost more than standard, non-cool options, a cool roof generally will pay for itself in a relatively short time through savings in energy costs. But managers should note that exact savings depend on a number of factors that include climate zone, product type, building insulation and the type of HVAC equipment used to cool the building.

Understanding the concept behind a cool roof does not fully describe the amount of actual energy savings managers can expect. Savings obviously can vary widely, but the difference in temperature between a cool roof and a regular roof can be large.

Climate, roof performance, insulation and other aspects of the building can cause variations in the exact amount of savings, but cool roofs can yield up to 50 percent savings on cooling loads.

Average savings in the range of 10-30 percent of the cooling energy required is a reasonable expectation for a typical application of cool roofing under normal conditions. This range might equate to a drop in the total electric bill of 3-10 percent. These ranges generally apply to low-rise buildings in regions with significant cooling loads.

Cool Roofs Reject Heat, Lower Cooling Loads

The availability of viable and energy-efficient cool roofing products has expanded greatly in recent years. Building owners and managers, specifiers, and architects increasingly use these products because of their capacity for energy savings.

Managers in institutional and commercial facilities also can achieve several other benefits, such as: lower interior temperatures, greater occupant comfort, and smaller cooling loads on HVAC systems. A growing number of building codes also mandate the use of cool roofs, and more voluntary programs include them as a key element of sustainable design.

By understanding some of the science behind cool roofs and the questions to ask in specifying these systems, managers can more effectively match product options to the organizations’ needs.

How Is It Cool?
Specifying a cool roof for an institutional or commercial facility can be a smart decision, but not everyone is clear on what exactly cool entails. Cool roofs have been around for quite some time and are increasingly popular options in many areas of the United States. Still, managers often do not understand the performance details of cool roofs.

A cool roof is highly reflective and can easily emit the small amounts of heat it absorbs, allowing the surface of the roof to remain cooler, and transferring less heat into the building.

Two radiative properties define a cool roof. Solar reflectance describes the fraction of solar energy the roof reflects. Thermal emittance describes the relative ability of the roof’s surface to radiate absorbed heat. Both of these properties are measured from 0 to 1, and the higher the number, the cooler the roof.

Here is where part of managers’ confusion comes in. Many elements of a roof’s structure, such as insulation, can affect a building’s interior temperature and its performance. These elements are obviously important, but “cool roof” refers specifically to the roof’s radiative surface properties.

It stands to reason that light-colored surfaces have high reflectance, and many early rebate programs for cool roofs used this characteristic as the only requirement. Uncoated shiny metal surfaces reflect the sun’s energy efficiently, but they have very low emittance and, as a result, become very hot during the day. A roof that demonstrates both high solar reflectance and high thermal emittance is essential for managers seeking to improve a facility’s energy performance.