shade sail over roof.
 

has anyone ever shaded their roof with a shade sail or shade cloth held about 6 or so inches above the roof surface?

I had a similar idea a few years ago.
I thought about those covers you see at car lots to protect the cars.
Only it would be much bigger.

A well vented roof with white shingles over a properly insulated attic should give the same results... it will also last 20+ years.

I had ordered white shingles for my roof. When it was time to have the roof put on they informed me that the shingles were unavailable. I then went with a green shingle.

A properly positioned and planted tree has just this effect.

It's a proven technology, but the 'wow factor' is low (unless you are a bird).

-AC

Mhh, true that.

In most cases though it takes slightly longer than one afternoon to grow a tree high enough to provide the shade needed so I can imagine people are looking for faster solutions ; )

Trees I have but where my driveway is positioned I don't have a great place to put a tree that will shade the house well. Especially considering my septic is just east of the driveway. Directly south of the house would be nice to have some shade. Hops vines are being planted this year I believe. Here is a link to my house so that my words make sense. https://maps.google.com/maps?q=2026+...ed=0CDQQ8gEwAA

Yeah, hops will grow really fast. But I am going with grapes and also fig trees, and I recommend it to you. In the late summer and fall, the ripening clusters of grapes and the abundance of figs is a party all by itself.

I'm just wild about the grapes, I have about six varieties, and they are growing on the sunniest side of my place, and the fig trees, also. They are sun and heat loving, and will quickly reward your efforts.

I don't know what winters are like for you, much colder than where I live, I would assume. Grapes, no problem. Figs can stand some cold, but as long as their roots don't freeze solid, they'll be back. And if your winters get really brutal, wrapping the tree from the ground and up the trunk in several layers of burlap and newspaper will save it over the winter.

These plants have the added benefit that they will drop their leaves in the winter, when you most need the sun.

Kind of like living with nature rather than against...

Best,

-AC

I would think the logistics of mounting the sail and keeping it in place during winds and such would place a high cost on the assembly. I once , for 50 years, lived in north eastern Ohio and found the most effective cost savers to be insulation, windows, and drafts, adding and eliminating. I had about 30" in attic, added insulation to the upper 4' of the basement walls, and spent a great deal of effort in eliminating air leaks, not only air coming in but air leaking out of duct work in the basement. Buy a tub of duct seal and some sealing tape ( the silver thin stuff), not duct tape as it will peel over time.

A ridge vent in the roof with some soffit ventilation helped a good deal as well in conjunction with the added attic insulation.

re figs and grapes - fantastic! I know figs grow like crazy in PDX - I'm in the mountains but was wishing I could put in some figs, maybe using a greenhouse. I do have one grape plant that survived the ravages of the deer, and it makes a fantastic summer shade screen. (Currently have a very rustic lattice on that side for it to climb on. Light in winter, shade on the cement in summer!)