Many homeowners know very little about the roof materials covering their home. When it comes time to replace a roof, most just simply replace with a similar material as before. Very few people actually stop to consider using recycled roof materials or even recycling the old materials that is removed from their home. However, making this simple choice can greatly benefit the environment and your budget for roof repair.
Saving Shingles
The average home in America is covered by a traditional asphalt shingle roof. Known for their affordability and aesthetic appeal these shingles come in just about every color possible. However, it is estimated that 22 billion pounds of the waste deposited into landfills each years are from old asphalt shingles.
Until recently these materials were manufactured new from composite asphalt materials, but with no recycled version available. These days asphalt shingles can be found in a recycled version, saving the homeowner money and sparing the environment. Since the recycling of asphalt shingles, the amount of waste ending up in landfills has been cut by 50%. As more homeowners encourage recycling of their old roof materials and choosing only recycled options for new materials the amount of waste in landfills can continue to drop significantly.
