Palo Alto`s climate is Mediterranean, warm and temperate, with very few precipitation and more than 250 sunny days per year. Roofs here tend to have lighter colors and be more reflective, for an increased energy-efficiency, as well as durability (considering that the sun is the main cause for roof degradation over time).
There are new roofing technologies incorporating cool roof features that become more and more popular in Palo Alto and in California in general. Roofs here are typically designed to send the UV rays back into the atmosphere, instead of absorbing them, so they reduce the cooling load, which is important in this type of climate. Light and cool roofs also contribute to lowering the heat island effect in the city and help reduce buildings` carbon footprint.
Some of the Palo Alto roofing color selections include:
- Terracotta
- Medium and light brown
- Slate gray
- Castle gray
Since 2017, there are new Building Energy Standards adopted by California and they explicitly require the use of energy-efficient roofing materials from now on, so we will likely see new roofing color blends in the future, designed to meet even better these new requirements.
Solar shingles and panels, as well as green roofs may also become more and more popular for the provided energy-efficiency, eco-friendly and durability.