Evaluation of Vegetative Roofs' Performance on Energy Consumption in Hot and Humid Climates

Abstract

Green roofs have been widely used in Europe proved to be beneficial. However, in the US they are not widespread. Previous studies have concluded that the main obstacle that makes architects, developers, etc. reluctant to introduce vegetative roofs is their preference for the traditional roofing since it is a tried-and-true technology. A positive feedback on the performance of vegetative roofs will encourage developers and possibly government authorities to invest more in them. Therefore, a survey was conducted to determine the performance of green roofs in existing buildings in hot and humid climates. This paper presents the results of this survey of around 40 buildings. The methodology and pertinent questions are also presented. Due to the many parameters involved in determining the rate of energy consumption in a building, a definite conclusion regarding how much exactly they can effect on saving can not be drawn, however, the results showed that green roofs can result in saving in the annual energy consumption and using shrubs as well as increasing soil thickness were found to be most effective in reducing building energy consumption.