Leading building membranes specialist Icopal has taken green roof technology a step further with the launch of an innovative system that is so lightweight, no extra load supporting construction is required.
This means the new-generation IcoMoss system from Icopal’s Eco-Activ range can be used on practically every flat or pitched new or refurbished roof location. Its base of moss also traps airborne particles and is therefore anti-polluting.
The IcoMoss system weighs only 20kg/m2 when saturated and is four times lighter than other extensive grass or plant-based green roof systems. This makes it especially useful in reducing rainwater run-off by absorbing rainfall and allowing the water to be evaporated.
The cost-effective system is simply a 10mm green roof mat impregnated with mosses that is easy to attach to bituminous roof coverings. The single-layer system comprises a water-storing fibre fleece, a later of three-dimensional fibres to provide anchorage for the moss, and a layer of specially selected mosses.
Mosses do not have roots so only a thin, lightweight mat is required to support their development. They are also low-maintenance but high-performance, their negatively-charged leaves attracting positively-charged particulate matter such as fine dust, soot and the salt crystals formed by pollutants such as Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) reacting with ammonia.
Their natural characteristics also give IcoMoss an insulating quality – providing cooling in the summer by reducing solar gain into a building which helps to reduce the cost of running air conditioning units.
And as well as reducing energy costs, the hardy IcoMoss system increases the life of the bituminous waterproofing membrane by protecting it against daily temperature fluctuations which would otherwise cause it to expand and contract.
The IcoMoss system is now being widely applied in a sustainable renovation project by the housing corporation Lefier in Groningen, The Netherlands, where a total of 20,000m2 is being laid on 400 homes.
"IcoMoss has made it possible for us to meet our sustainability ambitions fairly easily," said Project Manager Johan Duut of Lefier StadGroningen.
"The big advantage of IcoMoss is that it improves air quality without the need for any struc-ture changes. The environmental gain is the filtering of particulate matter from 10million m32 reduction. During heavy rainfall this project also makes it possible to slowly drain 300,000 litres of water which reduces the peak demand on the sewer system. IcoMoss is an ideal solution for us.”
Lefier has been nominated for Building Business Golden Green Awards for the sustainable and innovative nature of the renovation.