Proper ventilation in your attic helps address excess heat and moisture that can otherwise wreak havoc on your home.
Is venting an attic important to do.
To choose the proper ventilation system for your attic you ll first need to know the total area of your attic.
You would think that venting an attic would be counterintuitive in the winter or cold months.
Heat and moisture buildup in an attic cause predictable but different problems in hot and cold climates.
Roof vents and attic ventilation.
As a certified licensed home inspector it is not correct to say too much ventilation is bad for an attic unless rain moisture is getting in.
You re probably aware that most attics and roofs are vented.
To determine the area multiply the length times the width in feet.
Maybe you ve seen a fan in the side of your attic under the eaves or maybe you re aware of the ridge cap at the peak of your roof.
First it allows cool fresh air to enter into the attic.
Then divide the total area by 150 to find the total amount of vent space needed for your attic.
It keeps the attic cooler and reduces the amount of energy you need to devote to air conditioning.
Prior to installing the ridge vent a 1 inch wide strip of roof decking is cut out along both sides of the ridgeline to allow for air movement through the vent.
Why proper roof ventilation is important.
Attic ventilation in the winter.
Attic ventilation to do list in addition to the attic ventilation solutions above there are more steps you can take to prevent moisture issues in your attic and help maintain proper attic ventilation throughout the winter.
A ridge vent is a ventilation strip that is placed along the ridgeline of the home.
In summer attic ventilation does just the opposite.
Areas with hot summers and cold winters can suffer the effects of both.
So if your attic is 25 by 15 you ll need 2 5 feet of vent space.
While heat migrates in the summer because your attic is acting as a giant pressure cooker in the winter the attic space is colder allowing more room for the heat to rise and bring all that warm cozy.
Venting a homes attic is a very important best building practices will say 50 at the ridge and 50 at the soffits unobstructed.
There s one more benefit that is probably more important than either of these.
The vents keep the attic dry.
Attic fans do require electricity to operate which makes this attic ventilation solution more costly to operate than relying on natural attic ventilation through vents.
Do not use mechanical means electric attic fans.