ZinCo System Solutions – About the greening of pitched roofs

While the greening of flat roofs nowadays is very common and popular worldwide,

with millions of square meters being installed every year, the greening of pitched

roofs is still considered as an exceptional case.

To be clear: Pitched green roofs – properly planned and executed – are durable and safe and offer as many benefits as flat green roofs do. They retain water and delay the run-off of excess water, they enhance sound and thermal insulation and they provide habitat for animals and plants. At the same time pitched green roofs have special characteristics that have to be kept in mind when planning them.

Shear forces have to be derived into stable eaves edges and additional shear

barriers may have to be installed to prevent the green roof build-up from sliding;

specialised drainage boards need to be used to help retain the soil substrate;

substrate layers need to be increased and additional irrigation might be necessary; and last but not least the question of maintenance and the right selection of plants has to be taken into account right from the beginning. To meet these special requirements of pitched green roofs, professional planning and execution is essential and the use of special pitched green roof system build-ups is indispensable.

The shear forces on pitched green roofs depend upon the roof pitch, shear length

and build-up height. They can either be distributed into the eaves upstand (although this may lead to extremely large constructions in the case of very high forces), or they can be transferred to the roof structure by using special ZinCo support brackets. These support brackets, used in combination with ZinCo slotted eaves profiles, allow for excess rain water to drain away unobstructed and at the same time provide a much more delicate looking but strong enough roof edge. In case of pitches over 20° this combination of support brackets and eaves profiles can also be installed as an additional shear barrier.

ZinCo has offered proven systems solutions for the greening of pitched roofs since

1990 and is able to give support in the planning of pitched green roofs from

calculating loads to specifying number and location of support brackets and shear

barriers required. So tell us about your project. We have got the experience to bring it to life.