Green Roof Structural Details

Green roof structural requirements.

Green roof structural details.

Architectural details photo by tommy hileman. And to ensure the appropriate green roof assembly relative to the membrane chosen is provided it is important to understand how they work and how they are installed. The structure of a shallow pitched green roof differs slightly from the structure of a flat roof. A green roof or living roof is a roof of a building that is partially or completely covered with vegetation and a growing medium planted over a waterproofing membrane.

The structural requirements for a green roof are the most important aspect to consider. A green roof is a green space that is created by adding various layers of plants and a growing medium to the top portion of a traditional roofing system. The key to any good green roof project is a good waterproofing membrane. We try to think of green roof details more as diagrams than perfect scale drawings.

The substrate gives the right amount of nutrients to the plants so your green roof stays nice and green. Green roof and waterproofing details utilize many thin layers which might not be legible if drawn to scale. Steeply pitched green roof 25 40. Note that it is not like a traditional roof garden in which planting is done in free standing containers as well as planters that are placed on an easy to access roof terrace.

Additional structural support may need to be provided. The roofs are designed so that water drains vertically through the media and then horizontally along a waterproofing layer towards the outlet. Because water runs off the roof more quickly a thicker substrate layer is needed. You need to make sure that the structure can cope with the extra weight of your green roof especially when saturated with water.