Roof Colour In This Heat Wave.....dark Roofs Must Be Dying?

[Darren72]

Cream roof for us too. But i tend to sit in the boat naked in this weather so the heat doesnt affect me much!

Cream roof for us too. But i tend to sit in the boat naked in this weather so the heat doesnt affect me much!

 

 

Before you ask! I am only kidding............................the roofs blue!! LOL

[AidanLincs]

When I repaint my boat, I think I'm going to cover the entire outside in aluminium foil....

[Darren72]

When I repaint my boat, I think I'm going to cover the entire outside in aluminium foil....

 

 

Theres a boat in Skipton on L & L thats painted in aluminium paint!!

[Cloudinspector]

We have a black roof and cream sides and to be honest it's not too bad. In fact I've been going inside to cool off.

[tillergirl]

Our roof colour is dark blue and yes you can cook bacon and eggs on it. But we keep all the blinds and curtains closed during this hot weather, all windows, hatches and it actually feels better inside the boat than out. We have considered taking the top openers out of the hopper to let more air in as well...............

[Starcoaster]

Last year my roof was navy blue and bloody hell you couldn't breathe in here after about 10am, even with the door open and all the hoppers removed and a fan going. Honestly, I had to get up in the morning and everything to escape it. This year my roof is pale coloured, and while it is warm in here, it is manageable in way that it was not last year. Still too hot to stand on though!

[Guest]

Kind of still on topic, I was bought this RoadPro 12 volt fan many years ago and initially dismissed it as some cheap plastic crap that would pack up the first time I used it. Seven years in the Caribbean and now pressed into action this summer on my narrowboat, its still going strong.

 

A little noisy in high speed mode but it still gives a good blast in the low setting. Don't know if it would last long on optional "D" cell (U2) batteries although only takes 0.5 amp flat out when connected to 12 volt socket.

 

I think they are available a little cheaper on eBay as well.

 

Have the very same fan and use it summer and winter. Excellent kit.

[i love my narrowboat]

 

As far as I understand a generator + a battery charger would supply around 30Amps.....I dont really care what they are putting into the batteries.....but I'm very happy they are able to deliver power INSTEAD of me drawing it FROM the batteries and then having to recharge them daily.......

 

I have a green boat with beige roof. The sprayfoam seems to keep the heat out well.....I was planning on repainting the roof a dark grey, but having 2nd thoughts now.

WE have spray foam insulation and my understanding is that it is better than those sheets of cheap polystyrene people use. our boat is one colour all over but I do personally like the roof to be a different colour :-)

We have a cream roof, and a couple of large top boxes mounting five solar panels and the inside of the boat is pleasantly cool. We do have good insulation as well which must help!

We do keep the curtains drawn on the sunny side and the Houdini hatch and all windows and doors open.

 

It has been pleasantly bearable the past few days, surprisingly.

 

Ken

We have managed to keep cool with all the doors and side hatch open, we also have a large parasol over the front as we do not have a cratch cover. works well

Have the very same fan and use it summer and winter. Excellent kit.

It looks very smart, will have to get on ebay , thanks for sharing the info

[i love my narrowboat]

L

Cream roof for us too. But i tend to sit in the boat naked in this weather so the heat doesnt affect me much!



Before you ask! I am only kidding............................the roofs blue!! LOL

LOL can guarantee you, you are not the only person sitting naked in your boat :-)

[oarfish]

Boat is about as black as boats get and its pretty damn hot on the outside. I think we get away from the worst of it inside because of only having portholes and decent insulation. It's only evenings where the shell is still radiating heat that it's noticeably warmer inside than outside.

My life currently revolves around cocktail manufacture and finding shops with bags of icecubes. It's hell.

[MtB]

 

They are supplying about 50Amps at this precise moment....and that goes on for most of the day. No need for gennie or running boat engine so I'm happy.

 

Dean I'd be a bit worried by this, after reading the thread by Leo2 about her battery disaster....

 

 

MtB

Last year my roof was navy blue and bloody hell you couldn't breathe in here after about 10am, even with the door open and all the hoppers removed and a fan going. Honestly, I had to get up in the morning and everything to escape it. This year my roof is pale coloured, and while it is warm in here, it is manageable in way that it was not last year. Still too hot to stand on though!

 

Stand on your roof?

 

???????????????????? ????????????????????

 

 

MtB

 

MtB

[Starcoaster]

Ok, I had to SIT on it to paint it. And crawl across it a bit.

Gitbag!

[MtB]

[cheshire~rose]

I changed my roof colour from sky blue to dark green and I really can't tell any difference in the internal temperature. Even in this heat, with all doors and windows opened, it remains bearable and the cabin ceiling cool to touch, so it must be down to insulation. The main benefits I find of the darker roof is that it doesn't get so dirty looking and far less glare when steering.

 

We know we have good insulation as when we had all the snow the only place there was any visible sign of it melting was around the mushroom vents - and that was despite us have the stove pelting out heat 24/7 inside.

 

I have to say that while the temperature inside was a marked improvement after painting the roof a lighter colour the time when it seemed to be most noticeable was overnight when despite having to close a few more windows and hatches it still felt more comfortable. I have no idea why that should be? Maybe the roof acts as a storage heater when it is painted in a dark colour.

 

Of course none of this is scientific with comparable temperature readings for inside and outside but then no one would expect anything scientific from me would they!

[Québec]

This, from Australia, about roof colours, heat transfer, and insulation seems to make sense.

 

http://www.townsville.qld.gov.au/resident/planning/sustainable/Documents/Sustainable%20Housing%20Guide%205.pdf

 

The ideal for a narrow boat would seem to be a light coloured roof (and sides) with reflective insulation on the inside c. 25mm from the external surface. The more void space there is between the external wall and internal wall the more heat will transfer into the boat.

 

"Recent studies have shown that a light-coloured roof can have approximately 30% lower heat gain than a dark roof. Results from a case study in Townsville showed that after the roof was painted with a reflective light-coloured paint there was a significant reduction in the roof surface temperature and consequent ceiling space temperature. In turn this reduced room temperatures which increased human comfort and decreased the need for air-conditioning (Suehrcke, Peterson and Selby, 2008)."

[Doorman]

I'm not convinced that a boat with a light coloured roof is significantly cooler inside than with a boat with a dark roof (as long as here is decent insulation inside). OK - it might be a degree or two cooler.

 

My dark green roof is too hot to touch today, but the ambient temperature inside the boat is the same temperature as it is outside. ... but the cabin sides are cream which might help?

 

IME, it can be rather hard on the eyes (headache inducing stuff) steering a boat in this weather with a white or cream coloured roof. Swings and roundabouts, and how many days do we have each year when it really matters? It would be good to hear from anyone who has first hand experience after a re-paint .....

Totally agree Phil,

 

Our first boat had a cream roof and on sunny days even with sun glasses on it was a nightmare! Our present boat has a dark blue roof and cabin sides and to be honest the boat remains comfortably cool due to a liberal application of spray foam insulation.

 

Having two sets of side doors and a Houdini hatch helps too.

Edited July 19, 2013 by Doorman

[Nightwatch]

You sometimes see Land Rovers with a "double" roof skin. In case the owner drives it from the school run to the tropics!

 

Could,would this work on a narrow boat?

 

I really don't know.

 

Martyn

[pquinn]

what darker color for the roof do people think would compliment a boat with black sides?.i am not mad about the cream route.

[Québec]

what darker color for the roof do people think would compliment a boat with black sides?.i am not mad about the cream route.

 

Depending on the general scheme...but a decent, darkish maroon or mid/dark grey? (if you don't want black).

Edited July 19, 2013 by Québec

[Mike Tee]

You sometimes see Land Rovers with a "double" roof skin. In case the owner drives it from the school run to the tropics!

 

Could,would this work on a narrow boat?

 

I really don't know.

 

Martyn

Doubt it - I think the movement of air between the roofs cools down the one underneath. Unless you get the boat up to about 30mph, I don't think it will work that well. Although no doubt it would be better with two roofs than one, if only marginally. Then Land Rovers don't have that much insulation in the roof lining.

[Zayna]

What I want to know is why it's either minus 10 or gas mark 9?

 

Can we not have 'medium' for a few months?

 

Our roof is blue and I bet you could roast a chicken in there, sadly I'm not there, I'm in an office.

 

Does anyone put anything light coloured on their roof as a sort of summer sheet? If you're really suffering, could you not put some white sheeting on the roof or something, would that not work?

 

I do like having a dark roof for all the months and months and months and months and months of no sun whatsoever...

[Machpoint005]

I'm with Doorman, Zayna (and others) -- a light coloured roof is an absolute pig when steering into the sun (even if it's not a hot day). Yes, we have a heat wave at present, but what about the other 11 months of the year?

 

We're having a repaint just now (so missing all this luvverly boating weather ) and I've specified a dark blue roof for that very reason. But then, we are leisure boaters not liveaboards. Perhaps that is the main difference?

Edited July 19, 2013 by Machpoint005

[blackrose]

our roof is blue and definitely can't walk on it barefoot. I do believe you could cook an egg on it!!

 

My roof is creme and I can't walk on it barefoot in this heat either.

 

The sides of my boat are black but if I put my hand against the cabin sides on the inside and on the ceiling, I can't feel much difference in temperature.

I'm with Doorman, Zayna (and others) -- a light coloured roof is an absolute pig when steering into the sun (even if it's not a hot day).

 

I've never noticed a problem with that, but my creme roof is a matt non-slip finish so there isn't much glare. It's International interdeck.

[BlueStringPudding]

Well this is record breaking heat aboard Mabel. Just got home to find the temperature of the boat at 39 degrees centigrade (at 8pm). T&G walls are warmer than my hands, as is the mirror on the wall. Glasses in the galley feel like they've not long come out of a dishwasher. And having just taken the window panes out of the frames, the glass was almost too hot to comfortably handle.

 

It's got to this temperature despite having 5 windows open and the wooden blinds shut all day. Flip!

 

Interestingly, the ceiling which has less insulation above it than the walls isn't as warm to the touch as the walls. (Steel roof - polystyrene sheets - Formica ceiling. Whereas walls are steel - polystyrene sheet - OSB - T&G) Temperature difference might just be because the ceiling is some sort of Formica. Or might be because there's lots of junk like firewood and solar panels and stuff on the roof deflecting the heat / insulating it further from the sun.

 

Outer walls of the boat are mainly faded red and the roof is mainly navy... With some rust I'm not convinced anything other than good insulation makes a real difference to heat gain in the sun.

[Starcoaster]

My roof itself is now light, but also now covered with solar panels, thereby adding another layer between the sun and what hits the roof, and meaning that I don't get the glare of a light colour.