Is a living roof a good idea?

February 11, 2022

Author Ray Long

What is a living roof?

A living roof is a place where vegetation can grow and wildlife can inhabit. As more and more green land is taken for housing developments, people are bringing some of it back by constructing man made green areas on top of their existing structures. As climate change is the major issue facing this planet, the need for more ecological steps to be taken is surely the right thing to do.

As providers of 100% recyclable plastic products, our grids are proving to be more than just for parking your car on. They have been used in a variety of ways, and demonstrate how ecological they are. They prolong the life of wooden outbuildings so less trees are needed to be cut down to make more, they can be cut to fit around trees and shrubs so vegetation still gets water and they can be used as the foundation for a living roof.

Colin Brown has a concrete slabbed area in the garden that he wanted to convert. He purchased our grids to achieve his goal.

"Not used for parking, instead for a living shed roof. Recently moved house so using a previously built slabbed area to build a garden kitchen. Put up a basic frame with simple flat roof sloping to front (as want to see the end result) and may add a gutter to water butt later. Damp membrane sheet with off cuts under the plastic grid for bit of extra protection. Add some stone, chippings or bark to finish off the edge. Fill plastic grid with poor soil (adding perlite/clay beads to aid drainage if needed) and plant with sedums in the spring.

Quicker results can be achieved using pre-grown sedum matting but I prefer to plant sedums and split off pieces over time."

So as well as its ecological value, it's also aesthetically appealing as you can see from the second picture. Our grids can take the weight of up to 500 tonne per square metre, but thankfully weigh very little, therefore they don't add unbearable weight to the structure.