Americans spend about $40 billion annually to air condition buildings – sixth of all electricity generated in this country.

A building owner can experience an energy savings (kWh) of up to 15% after using a reflective coating.

Roof coatings reflect the sun causing roof surface temperature to drop by 55oF, decreasing the amount of heat transferred into a building.

Roof coatings reduce the Urban Heat Island Effect and peak energy use which lowers carbon footprints and smog, while lowering the amount of roofing waste going to landfills.

BENEFITS OF ROOF COATINGSRoof coatings are applied to a variety of low slope roofs on multi-family residential, commercial, and industrial buildings to extend the life of a roof by preventing water, chemical, or physical damage which saves money for building owners. Certain roof coatings even provide an extra level of waterproofing protection to help shed water to keep building interiors dry. Also, roof coatings are the most effective and least costly option to help building owners save energy. In fact, a building owner can experience an energy savings (kWh) of up to 15% after using a reflective roof coating1.

HOW ROOF COATINGS LOWER ROOF TEMPERATURESAccording to EPA ENERGY STAR, Americans spend about $40 billion annually to air condition buildings – sixth of all electricity generated in this country2. Reflective roof coatings reflect visible light and infrared and ultraviolet radiation. This leads to lower roof temperatures, which in turn helps reduce cooling costs for buildings with air conditioning units and reduce interior temperatures and relative humidity in buildings with or without cooling units3. By minimizing cooling costs in warmer climates, peak energy usage is reduced thereby decreasing the risk of power outages and the strain on the electrical grid4. This is extremely important, especially since total energy consumption is expected to grow by 35% over the next ten years5.

ENERGY USE IN COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL FACILITIESIn the United States, there are nearly 6 million commercial buildings and industrial facilities6 that generate a combined 43 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions7. The combined annual energy cost for U.S. commercial buildings and industrial facilities is $400 billion. Therefore, if the energy efficiency of commercial and industrial buildings was improved by 10 percent, the collected savings would be $40 billion8. Reflective roof coatings can play a critical role to achieve these energy savings.

Roof Coatings Lower Roof Temperatures, Reduce Urban Heat Island Effect, and Decrease Peak Energy Use

BENEFITS OF ROOF COATINGS

HOW ROOF COATINGS REDUCE URBAN HEAT ISLAND EFFECTThe Urban Heat Island Effect is a regional elevation in air temperature, usually gauged by the difference between urban and rural air temperatures. On a typical summer afternoon, a clean white roof that reflects 80% of sunlight will stay about 55°F cooler than a gray roof that reflects only 20% of sunlight9. Reflective roof coatings reduce the Urban Heat Island Effect and peak energy use which lowers carbon footprints and smog, while lowering the amount of roofing waste going to landfills.

COOL ROOFDARK ROOFReflects 80%Reflects 20%

550F

HOW YOU CAN HELPRCMA is asking Congress to institute a federal tax credit for reflective roof coatings applied to low slope roof surfaces on multi-family residential, commercial, and industrial buildings. For more information, please contact John Ferraro, RCMA Executive Director, at jferraro@roofcoatings.org or 202-207-1121.

HOW ROOF COATINGS PREVENT TEAR-OFF AND WASTE

Every building owner will eventually be faced with the decision to completely tear-off, reroof, or repair an existing roof. Approximately, 75% of low slope roofing jobs are re-roofing projects. In fact, 2.5 billion square feet of roofs are either replaced or re-coated each year. Given that roofing materials are the third greatest contributor to waste in landfills10, roof coatings are an ideal solution to extend the life of a roof and prevent tear-off and waste. For example, studies done with white acrylic coatings applied to polymer-modified asphalt roof membranes have shown the ability to slow the aging by a factor of four over a ten year period11. This indicates a potential to achieve energy savings without generating waste. Finally, besides roofs that need to be replaced, there is an opportunity to save energy with most existing commercial roofs by using a reflective roof coating.

REFLECTIVE ROOF COATINGS TAX CREDITTo incentivize building owners to make the investment to save energy and reduce roofing waste, the Roof Coatings Manufacturers Association (RCMA) supports the creation of a federal tax credit for reflective roof coatings applied to low slope roof surfaces on multi-family residential, commercial, and industrial buildings. A modest tax credit based on the square footage of low slope roofs would apply to reflective roof coating products that are certified by the trusted EPA ENERGY STAR program.

1U.S. EPA ENERGY STAR Program2U.S. EPA ENERGY STAR Program3Oak Ridge National Laboratory4Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory5U.S. DOE6U.S. Energy Information Administration, 2012 Commercial Buildings Energy Consump tion Survey (CBECS). Number of U.S. commercial buildings: 5.6 million; Number of U.S. industrial facilities: 346,0007Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas and Sinks: 1990-2013. Table 2-5: CO2 Emissions

from Fossil Fuel Combustion by End-Use Sector (MMT CO2 Eq.)” February 2015. U.S. greenhouse gas emissions generated by commercial buildings: 16 percent; U.S. greenhouse gas emissions generated by industrial facilities: 27 percent8U.S. DOE Better Buildings Program, March 20159Calculated by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory under the standard summer afternoon weather specified in ASTM Standard E1980-1110U.S. EPA11National Roofing Contractors Association Guide to Roof Coatings, Second Edition