Using Mineral Wool in Inexperienced Roof purposes is an rising development in North America and in nations the place such trade continues to be younger or targeted on quick earnings fairly than on longevity.
One promoting good thing about Inexperienced Roofs is the prolonged lifetime of the underlying water proofing as a result of the Inexperienced Roof protects the roofing in opposition to the weather. Can Mineral Wool stand as much as this?
In managed environments Mineral Wool or different mineral sponging parts work effectively – however pollute landfills after use
In opposition to any semi scientific promotional materials from Mineral Wool applicators, the market share of mineral wool within the German Inexperienced Roof building trade is round 0.1% or out of 100 million sq. foot new inexperienced roof building yearly (Germany) it is just round 100,000 sf/yr.
The explanations for this marginal market share are easy:
- Mineral Wool has proven a drastic loss in efficiency after 5-7 years.
- Mineral Wool is engineered for nurseries and for just one rising cycle.
- Mineral Wool fibers are thought-about “hazard” in Europe.
- On in depth Inexperienced Roofs the water retention and water-air ratio is unsuitable for succulents.
- Mineral Wool expands and contracts in wet-dry cycles.
- Mineral Wool is hydrophobic and might dry out the standard overlaying development media sooner.
- Mineral Wool development media boards require ballast.
- Inexperienced Roofs with Mineral Wool are troublesome to restore, replant or recuperate.
- Mineral Wool interrupts pure soil profiles (unnatural soil profile) no balanced Air-to-Water Ratio.
- Mineral Wool is an extra set up step and associated to greater prices.
- Some Mineral Wool merchandise compress underneath the load of ballast (soil).
- Some Mineral Wool merchandise comprise Phenol resin or Phenol-Urea-Formaldehyde resin as binder and these merchandise can hardly be recycled. ECOSE® Know-how is environmentally higher but it surely doesn’t remove different issues talked about right here.
- Reuse of all kinds of Mineral Wool for a similar objective is just potential after a (non-existing) troublesome re-manufacturing course of.
Roof restore and Mineral Wool can’t be reused as a result of it falls aside
An inexperienced inexperienced roof installer may like the concept of an apparent easy set up. Nonetheless, what seems to be good in a brochure doesn’t essentially mirror the truth. Ballast on the Mineral Wool boards continues to be required and this requires totally different tools. The setup prices for extra tools are the identical whether or not small or bigger quantities of ballast ( or ballast reduces the setup prices).
Engineers may just like the large quantity of water retention of Mineral Wool. Nonetheless, they overlook that vegetation (vegetation) have a really particular want for a balanced air-water ratio. If engineers plan using succulents (like Sedums) such air-water ratio is much more essential (emphasis on air). Engineers aren’t horticulturalists.
Mineral Wool is broadly utilized in nurseries for one-season greens. After this rising season the Mineral Wool (usually mixed with plastic) finally ends up on landfills. In 2008 it was round 200,000 tons of hazard waste in Netherland alone. Additional, nurseries are rising their crops underneath extremely laptop managed situations for vitamins and air-water ratio in inexperienced homes. Who desires to promote a nursery to a constructing proprietor with roof underneath the sky?
On the whole shouldn’t we like Mineral Wool in Inexperienced Roofs? Mineral Wool provides us profitable further jobs sooner or later for restore or substitute (job safety…).
Mineral Wool can’t be reused (from inexperienced roofs and most different purposes). In Europe it has to acquired in particular baggage for the landfills.
I’m a lifelong inexperienced roof skilled and I stand as much as my principals with the promise {that a} inexperienced roof ought to final so long as the constructing – and that the supplies might be reused for a similar objective after that and with out processing (there are lots of fancy names in promoting for it, like cradle-to-cradle and so on.).
Like me many individuals don’t care about fancy phrase creation and so they stand for and what the American Inexperienced Roof trade ought to stand for uncompromising high quality and doing issues proper. Fast earnings, prompt gratification or mindless warranties don’t promote the commerce {of professional} Inexperienced Roofers and it’s definitely not my philosophy.
Mineral Wool is: From hero to zero!
Conclusion Recycling Research Austria:
Materials recycling of synthetic mineral fiber waste, however, seems troublesome in the long run, for the reason that destruction of the fiber geometry, which is decisive for the carcinogenic potential of synthetic mineral fibers, is just potential with a excessive degree of technical effort. Applied sciences, a few of which can be found in Germany, for the recycling of synthetic mineral fibers, e.g. within the constructing supplies trade, don’t but appear to permit ample belief in a sustainable answer on this level.
I admire studying my opinion, primarily based on over 4 many years of Inexperienced Roof expertise from all Inexperienced Roof pleasant locations on the earth.
By Jörg Breuning
