Why aren’t plastics used more in roofing?

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It’s just that, every couple years, the house needs a new roof due to wear and tear, stuff falling on it, etc.; fine, I get it. Meanwhile, the Playskool house across the street in the neighbor’s yard has been there, taking similar kinds of abuse long enough for the original kids who played in it to have kids of their own, and not one leak.

Seems like a simple enough solution, and I’m nowhere near smart enough to think no one else has thought of this, so what gives?

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8 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

One of the reasons they make polyethylene (PE) sheeting black is that “carbon black” (pretty much powdered carbon) is one of the best things for protecting it against UV degradation, which is the breaking of the long chains (i.e. why it called Poly) and making it brittle.

So yes, one of the few things that affects PE is UV radiation, so it’s not particularly good for outside use. Same for polypropylene.

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