Five Common Causes of Poor Attic Venting. Virtually ALL houses can benefit from increased attic ventilation. Passive vents will work great with a ridge vent! Basically, its a slot cut in the deck a couple feet up from the drip edge that will act like soffit vents an allow air to get into the attic. Cross ventilation openings should be no less than 1/16 inch and no more than 1/4 inch. Most people have plenty of exhaust vents but not nearly enough *intake* vents. Having one without the other is not doing you any good. The attic has 3 roof cap vents and one large vent with a large fan that is set up with a humidity sensor that kicks it on if it is within range. Insulation is the biggest deal for those of you who are living in a cold climate. I asked a lot of questions and I was never actually shown if my house HAS any soffit vents! If a gable vent seems like too big of a commitment or undertaking, consider smaller eyebrow vents that are mounted low on the roof slow so they can act as intake vents. There are other reasons a homeowner would want to install soffit vents. With a venting drip edge, you will likely only have to remove about an inch off the part of your roof that covers the rafters on your roof. The total venting space should equal 1/150 of the floor . Appreciate all the advice on this forum! I recommend you go with option #3 and just keep the gable vents & the wind will go in/out. Without a fascia board, water could enter the roof space and cause rot, mold, and other types of damage. Once you have decided the type of insulation that you will be using, you want to rid your attic of any old existing insulation or make sure that what is there is working. Due to their nature-reliant construction, they are super energy-efficient and can save you some serious money when it comes to your homes energy expenses. So now the remaining attic only has a single gable vent with no intake. What kind? Can you increase the size of the gables so they can have more free area for the air to come in/go out? To ventilate your attic without soffits you can use gable vents, eyebrow vents, a venting drip edge, a shingle-over intake vent, wind turbines, or power vents. Typically you would have a gable vent on each end of the attic. In the event an opening is more than 1/4 inch, it should be covered with wire cloth, perforated vinyl, or other screening material. The insulation meets the roof without any gap for airflow at the soffit. I have a cross-gable roof. I have FOUR dormers mid-level of the attic, and a large fan, not used, with about a 3 ft by 2 ft area at end of attic that is positioned to move air out of the home. If there is no ridge vent, this same attic would require 6 sq. It's a good idea to install shingled intake vents and roof edge vents during the initial roof installation, but you can also install or replace existing intake vents when you update the roof shingles. They work much like a box fan placed in a window on a hot summer day. ft. of ventilation area Convert sq. Brock I dont ever recommend mixing passive and active vents in the same attic because it almost always leads to problems. Any thoughts would be much appreciated. What should we do? I mean, people have lived in this house for 170 years, no moisture problems. Essentially bring air through the high interior ceiling and pass it through the attic with gable vent outtake? I have two contractor proposals. Beware of adding a ridge vent without soffit vents (the worst) or soffit vents without a ridge vent (bad) or only gable-end vents (usually bad). I dive into this topic more on this page: Surface Temps vs. Air Temps (Why ventilation cant solve it all). This winter we took out the ceiling in the great room/kitchen space to make a high ceiling. Problem 2: Aluminum or vinyl soffits (eaves) installed over plywood soffits that don't have venting holes. First, let me reiterate that I think you should use soffit vents as your intake source for attic ventilation. With this power though, comes a lot of electricity use, so keep this in mind when your electric bill increases. I wont recommend you force air into the attic unless you have an easy path for it to exhaust out. #1 Problem - Blocked, Clogged or Dirty Soffit Vents. Ed, I have a 45 year old cedar shake roof that I will be replacing soon. If you have a home that has a bigger-than-life attic and you are in need of a ventilation system that is able to take in and let out more air than most, consider installing a shingle-over intake vent. Another point: we are about to put in a new roof, so I wonder if some type of intake installed with the new roof would be better? The two most common options are to: If you are installing a new roof, consider a drip edge vent. Well, you are not the only one who has experienced it. It should be ok, even though this is untraditional (insulating a non-conditioned space with r-value). These vents are sneaky little boogers- but in a good way. 1. I I have eaves but am not sure if they can soffitted or we should add low gable vent. His dilemma, how to adequately ventilate his attic without vented soffits. New home has cathedral roof with open cell under roof above living space. If youre looking to keep things cooler in the She-Shed, you need to consider sealing it up air tight and using some A/C too. 2 months later, I had a new roof installed. Many people who think about installing gable vents slightly cringe at the thought of them. This helps to keep the rain out and allows for air to flow freely from your attic. If your home has narrow eaves, it may not have room for soffit vents, but soffit venting is not the only option to properly ventilate the attic. The Spruce uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. However, if your attic has blocked soffit vents and is not well-sealed from the rest of the house, attic fans will suck cool conditioned air up out of the house and into the attic. Wind turbines are placed along the gable of your home and are also one of those great ventilation systems that are two-in-one. UPGRADE PICK: Natural Light Solar Attic Fan. I cannot see a way to put in soffit vents. Injecting insulation into the drywall? But no issues, just hot in summer. You have discovered that your attic needs a bit more ventilation, but you have run into a small problem: it does not even have any existing soffits. Unless your roofing system has insulation on the roofing deck and is designed without ventilation, your furnace should not be heating your attic. I was talked into this popular ridge vent. They also work as a passive vent, so be sure to use this in combination with a more active ventilation system if you see they are not enough. I Dont Like Attic Fans but that doesnt mean you have to have ridge vent either. I believe the attic used to extend into the bedroom but was vaulted and the attic sealed off in a remodel. See what I mean here? We live in Philadelphia suburbs in a typical builder home built in 1983 of 2314 sq ft. We changed our roof 18 years ago when moving in and its time to replace it again with better performing shingles. This type of vent also works best when there is another vent that is pulling air from the attic, so use it in tandem with a vent on top of the roof. Ventilating attic spaces can help regulate temperatures in your living spaces. You made no mention of converting the attic space into livable space, so that does not make sense to add it there. It cut our bill by maybe 5%. I have mild growing probably from before the roof was installed. Having a vapor barrier in the attic can raise the multiplier to 300 sq. Insulating a cathedral ceiling for maximum comfort year-round. Ridge vents work their best in combination with soffit vents. The guideline drops to 1 ft for every 300 ft with a vapor barrier. Various exhaustvents can be used in conjunction with low gable vents and eye-brow inlets. If none of these options are possible, then we suggest you focus your attention to making sure the floor of the attic space is air-tight by checking ductwork (if applicable), lights/fans/vents protruding wires or hardware into the attic, and any other area of the attic floor where there are openings/holes/seams. Im inclined to say to myself I got taken but maybe no harm done since the four windows and open space from 50 year old fan not working is enough fresh air coming in. They may seem like an eye-sore, but modern technology has afforded homeowners some very aesthetically pleasing options that wont distract from the beauty of your home, can blend in with your siding or brick, and work well to keep the attic ventilated. " (See ICC R806.1.2.) Greebo is spot on, you want soffit vents for your air intake. Use a passive system and you wont have issues with sucking air out of your home (or chimney). You wont like the answer, but you probably need to take down the drywall and insulate the empty cavities. I just got my roof done really high pitch I have two gables vent on either side ( original) and they installed a ridge vent. You want to see which of these is going to work best for your attics particular personality and then move forward with purchasing. You also want to choose the type of insulation that you will be using. Even more, it is going to do a more effective job at insulating those spaces. To my surprise, the soffit had no venting. What would you recommend? Wondering if a minimal amount of airflow through the fiberglass is better than none? The attic istongue and groove. Continue with Recommended Cookies. As the wind blows across the roof of your house, it sort of swoops up at the ridge and the ridge depressurizes and the air that's in the attic sort of gets sucked out at the ridge. Noticed I do NOT have vented soffits and now I have drastic mold growth in the attic. I have a split level home with a gable roof. Options include using a metal screen wire to create a barrier outside the vent, investing in flexible roof sealant to fill any holes or gaps around the vent, and replacing nearby flashing and shingling to prevent rain water from seeping through worn or damaged parts of the roof. 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