An intensive green roof weight varies from 35 to beyond 100 pounds per square foot when dry.
R value of intensive green roof.
Green roofs save energy compared to uninsulated roofs or poorly insulated roofs or even better black poorly insulated roofs.
For a conventional roof.
15 to 50 per square foot.
8 to 20 per square foot.
By allowing the designer to create a setting of an urban park on a building s roof an intensive green roof design comes with a unique value proposition.
With that in mind the real variable in the weight is the depth of planting material.
An intensive green roof is more high profile and resembles a roof garden because it has a much wider variety of plants.
All vegetation is planted directly into the soil mixture that makes up the rooftop.
Over its estimated lifespan of 40 years a green roof would save about 200 000 of which nearly two thirds would come from reduced energy costs.
The economic benefits of any individual green roof will however depend on its design geographic location surroundings and the building itself.
In other words go above r 20 and make green roof decisions for other reasons than energy.
Once you have more than r 20 in a roof assembly that is you meet the code things pretty much don t matter.
The soils of a green roof will capture a significant amount of stormwater which is absorbed and used by the planted material.