Investing In Exterior House Painting Can Help The Planet And Your Pocketbook
Did you know that white roofs can be beneficial for the environment, your wallet, and the life of your roofing as a whole? As a result, these roofs are popping up across North America as they grow in popularity. When painting a white roof, exterior house painting experts use a reflective white coating that reflects sunlight and radiates absorbed heat.
In comparison to dark-coloured roofs that reflect a mere 20 percent of sunlight, white roofs reflect up to 90 percent and have 100 percent thermal emittance (the ability to radiate the absorbed heat). This means less heat is absorbed by buildings throughout the city.
Let’s take a closer look at some of the benefits white roofs have to offer:
Reduce the Urban Heat Island Effect
Ever notice how a city is always a few degrees warmer than the suburbs or a rural community? The heat from sunlight winds up absorbed by the roads and buildings in a city. Concrete’s thermal properties, coupled with a lack of vegetation in urban centres, winds up making busy cities much warmer than the weather might suggest. This is known as the Urban Heat Island effect. Suburbs have more tree cover and less areas for sunlight to be trapped. Surfaces that better reflect and radiate heat, like a white roof, can help cut down on the Urban Heat Island.
Reduce Energy Use in the Summer
Since buildings are hotter in the city, especially in the summer, energy is being used constantly to air condition buildings and homes. This increased energy use takes a toll on the environment, the power grid, and the bank account. Energy bills skyrocket and outages roll across cities, provinces, and states. White roofs can help you save money and energy spent on cooling your home by reflecting the sunlight and reducing the amount of heat that is absorbed. All you need to invest in is some exterior house painting!
Reduce Smog and CO2
White roofs reduce heat, smog, and pollution. Highly populated cities in the US have seen a decrease is smog pollution since white roof projects began. This means fewer people with respiratory illnesses (such as asthma) will suffer during hot summer days and the air will be cleaner and better for the environment overall.
Heat can warp and crack roofs, especially when sunlight isn’t reflected well and heat isn’t radiated. Fortunately, white roofs do the opposite—the sun reflectance and heat emittance protect the roof from heat damage, and extend the life of the roof. Getting a white roof will save you from a costly roof replacements more often.
The next time you consider exterior house painting, remember these important benefits to having a white roof. Your roof will be stronger, your energy bills will be cheaper, and you will help your city and environment by reducing heat, smog, and energy use.