How to Create a Green Roof

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nice video . . . really informative . . . thanks for sharing . . . !!!

That's really a useful video. But i have a doubt- can the same plants be used for regions with different climatic conditions?

Really nice video, I'll be sure to look futher into this topic. Maybe ill Try growing some food?
Anyway, nice vid.

Hi Val,
You know you can do both, most of the green system have a water catchment as part of the green roof. In fact what I do is use a porous driveway to catch not only the water from the roof but also catch all the water which lands on the driveway. This water is filtered with the Black and Gold mix (tires and saw dust) that the kids from UCF tested.

JW

I had heard that sawdust can have toxic leachates and is prone to rot, while tires have toxic leachates. Even when used for Earthship walls they must be covered in at least and inch of stucco and painted to keep harmful vapors out. Do you have a link to the UCF studies?? I would like to see what they tested for in the "filtered" water from the vegetated roof, and what different soils and vegetation were tested.
In the Earthship books they used sand as a first filter, then several stages of particle filters, a Katydin filter, activated charcoal filter and then UV light to get rid of the last of the virus and bacterial contamination. In heavy use with a lot of pollutants/leachates, the filters had to be cleaned very often. The gray water tank was used for interior plant watering, but had to be emptied and sand cleaned after too much detergent use. In reality the greasy dishwater and soapy wash water should have a "Y" valve and go to a black water system.
From what I read before on vegetation roof water catchment, it was best used outside as gray water for lower gardens, and not for filtering and inside consumption use. Just too much to filter.

Hi Val,
I did not read the part that you use the water for drinking! Good job. The run off water we collect is for irrigation and gray water. The study about the "Black and Gold" mix goes back a few years. I learned about it while studying the great green roof that the Students and Faculty of UCF have built. The great part about the UCF roof are all the sensors they installed. One of the best things they found out is that even in the HOT Central Florida summers, the temperature of the roofing material only changes by a few degrees. That means the plants and soil absorb the heat and the roofing membrane and the area under it stay at a relatively constant temperature. Of course there is a Green roof in New York that is over 70 years old and has only had 3 repairs over that time, so the benefits of a green roof have been known inside the industry for a very long time. I am glad more people are taking notice.

Here are a few links to the UCF info:


UCF Newsroom

http://www.stormwater.ucf.edu/resear...0Sept%2026.pdf

The University of Central Florida did well!! In previous reading on older green roofs used for over a thousand years, natural vegetation on even up to 3/12 sloped roofs of Vikings, and later buildings of western pioneers, cooled the building in summer while keeping it warmer in winter. I had a friend build a concrete arch living roof buried structure home that performs very well. Many Earthships use a living roof for most of the roof, and a rubber membrane for the separate rainwater catchment section. The runoff of a greenery roof certainly doesn't have to have the chemicals of agricultural runoff, seeing it is not chemically fertilized or sprayed with herbicides or insecticides.

Some really interesting information. Using vegitation is still used in some homes in England, traditional thatched roofs are still used in some homes in the south of England.