Green Building Concepts For The Garage

Everybody talks about green homes and green design but many a time people forget about their garages. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has found that an attached garage creates a large amount of in-house pollution and affects the health of the occupants. This happens because the interface between the house and the garage is not properly designed reducing the indoor quality of air. Thus, you may have all the green features incorporated in the house, but if you neglect the garage, those green features come to naught.

Car exhaust contains poisonous gases, which are the primary source of indoor air pollution. It is important to use proper low-formaldehyde sealing agents to ensure that garages do not leak their toxic fumes into the house. Other materials found commonly in garages too give off poisonous vapors. The list includes turpentine oil, benzene used by lawn mowers, cleaning agents, and pesticides used for gardening. Investing in a garage exhaust fan that can suck out noxious air is a good option.

Installing a green roof for your garage is a good green innovation. A green roof can be completely or partially covered by grass, plants or other vegetation. Several US companies offer the services of building a green garage roof. The roof is first waterproofed with Thermoplastic Polyolefin (TPO), which is an environmentally friendly and recyclable roofing product. On top of the TPO layer, water retention and filter layers are put. Next comes the top most layer, the growing medium, which is a light weight mixture of rock and soil. Drought resistant plants with shallow roots are the ideal choice for this type of roof. The environmental advantages of a green roof are many. Green roofs help reduce noise pollution, filter rainwater and reduce the cost of cooling your house. Respiration of plants helps reduce ambient heat in the surroundings. The plants absorb sunlight and reduce the heat from reaching the roof surface thereby increasing the life of the roof. According to a recent study, a green roofed garage can produce enough oxygen for 25 people and also remove eight kg of pollutants annually. A green thatched garage not only improves aesthetics but also attracts birds, which increases the biodiversity of your area. -Elise Fendmeyer