Hot Roofs and Potholes

It is becoming widely known that reflective roof systems can help keep buildings cooler.  And the Duro-Last white membrane is "The World's Coolest Roof."®  But there is a relatively new premise that explains the sense of urgency felt by some urban areas.  It's the connection between hot roofs and potholes.

What do hot roofs have to do with potholes?  It's really just common sense.

First, research has established that urban heat islands exist. Urban heat islands are those urban areas where daily maximum temperatures are hotter than the surrounding rural areas - several degrees hotter.

Now, as the daily maximum temperature increases during spring and summer months, buildings get hot.  And when buildings get hot, people get hot.  When people get hot, they turn down the thermostat.  So air conditioning use and power demands go up.

As power demand goes up, more power must be generated to support that demand.  In much of the country, power is generated by burning fossil fuels such as coal.  So the use of fossil fuels increases.

Even though power plants do a very good job of cleaning their smoke, pollutants still cling to the air.  All the above factors, plus the pollution generated from activities associated with the dense population of urban areas, make cities more susceptible to the development of smog.

What's the connection with potholes?   If urban areas don't comply with federal requirements to reduce levels of pollutants such as ozone, they can be faced with the prospect of losing highway funds that are used for roadway maintenance.

And that's how cool roofs can help prevent potholes.  By replacing dark roofs with Duro-Last's Cool Zone roofing system, heat islands can be reduced, cities can be cooler, and highway funds can continue to flow.