This post will show-and-tell “cool” (some literally) roofing technology. This is not an endorsement of one brand over another. Your budget, goals and personal preference will drive that train. (We’ll be happy to give our two cents if you ask based solely on our experience.) What I want to do in as few words as possible is give you a broad overview of what’s available, show examples and encourage you to research what would work best for your unique circumstance. I basically picked the following sites because they have sharp photo galleries.

Let’s begin with a general overview of roofing at Wikipedia. Arguably the most important aspect of weatherproofing a house (otherwise we’d all live in tents) is the hard roof over your head. Note that Shingles is a generic term, technically a shingle is made of wood, but I’ll use the word generically to refer also to what could be stone, metal, ceramic, rubber, plastic, fiberglass, concrete, asphalt, fabric, even dead or living plants. You get the point, there are plenty of choices.

Leading off is the recycled rubber and plastic shingles of EcoStar. Until you pick up and bend them, you would not know these shingles are not authentic cedar shake or stone slate. The 1:36 video on their home page explains how they make them.

Another can’t-believe-it-until-you-feel-it product is TAMKO’s steel shingles which come in Cool Colors, rated as energy efficient by the Cool Roof Rating Council (CRRC). (There truly is a “council” for everything.) Other than looking just like real wood, stone or ceramic tile, TAMKO features a four-way locking system for a weathertight fit.

DECRA provides another variation of metal shingle with their stone-coated steel roofing, another sharp looking alternative to au natural. DECRA also provides an informational PDF on their home page explaining the benefits of recycled steel and that “cool roofing” doesn’t limit you to white shingles.

Finally, it’s one thing to claim you’ve got a “green roof”, as in environmentally friendly, energy efficient and sustainable, but you boost your bragging rights to a whole new level when you can rightly describe your roof as an environment, a real live garden or landscape.

GAF Materials Corporation is a huge company and one of their product offerings (albeit mostly for commercial application unless you’re flush with GREEN) is a roof that grows. Within their Green Roof Central is just that, what they market as GAF GardenScapes for installing what they promote as a “hassle-free” garden roof. A regular garden can be a struggle so I remain skeptical about their “free of hassle” claim but the GAF offering is still cool. If you’re curious, visit Green Roof Plants to learn about varieties which can survive atop a roof. I don’t know for sure but guess based on common sense that you wouldn’t be able to plant anything that requires mowing. Just imagine getting the rider on the roof.

As I close, please email me if you know of any neat building materials or techniques. One of the joys of our business practice is learning new things, especially if using the technology or material saves time, money and prevents a trip to the landfill.