From Shingles to Rubber

It doesn't take getting an entirely new roof to see a noticeable difference in your home's energy efficiency. Adding coatings, ensuring your insulation and ventilation are working properly, and even installing a green roof can all help improve your roof's efficiency without the cost of a whole new roof.

Apply a Reflective Coating

A reflective coating can make your roof more efficient without requiring you to replace any roofing material or make serious changes. One of the benefits of a coating is that it works on just about all roof surfaces. You can also often select between clear coats or colored coats, so if you want to make your roof a lighter color to help reflect even more heat, you have the option of doing this without needing to buy new roofing materials.

This should be done after you've verified your roof doesn't need any work, so make sure a professional roofer inspects your roof inside and out before you start the coating process.

Reinsulate

Your roof's insulation helps keep heat out during hot months and vice versa come winter. If this insulation starts to fail or is simply too old to work effectively anymore, more heat will be allowed into your attic and subsequently the rest of your home. Along with ventilation, insulation is one of the most important parts of your roof. This is another step you can take that doesn't require any serious changes to your roof and will help make a noticeable difference in your energy bills if your current insulation is in bad shape.

Improve Ventilation

Adequate attic ventilation ensures that warm air doesn't get trapped in your attic. Typically, warm air should be able to escape once temperatures start dropping in the evening. If it can't, your air conditioner will have to work harder to keep things cool longer into the night.

Ask a professional roofing contractor to inspect your roof and its ventilation. Sometimes ventilation may need to be cleaned or added, and in some cases, you might benefit from having fans installed to help with airflow. Ventilation should be constructed a certain way, so it helps to have professional input here.

Install a Living Green Roof

If you have a flat or small-sloped roof, you may have the option of installing a living roof. This effectively entails installing a garden on your roof where grasses and other plants with shallow roots grow. This has several benefits, from reducing stormwater runoff, absorbing more heat before it gets into your home, providing more sound insulation, and reducing the heat island effect. This process will likely cost more than other methods, and not all roofs will support this type of modification, but if you have the budget for it and a roof where it will work, it's an option worth exploring.

With this, like with reflective coatings, it's a good idea to have your roof inspected and any necessary work taken care of before you start this process. It can also help to get the input of an arborist who can help you choose the right vegetation for your roof.

Contact a roofing company like New Roof to learn more.