Power Roof Vents Problems

I used to think roof ventilation was the cure all for everything.

Power roof vents problems.

This protection feature reduces the amount of air that moves which defeats the purpose of the older designs in the first place. Because solar attic fans operate with a lower power output they are unable to move as much air as some of the other options that are available. If you use the older style of roof vent to provide air circulation then you must install traps or blockage points that prevent them from nesting in your attic s insulation. After that a different level of thinking is required.

That means you will need to double up your investment in this area. Radiant barrier stapled to underside of roof. Power vents shouldn t be used because they create more problems than they fix. On paper the high vents are.

Insufficient ventilation can lead to moisture problems during the winter and decreased energy efficiency during the summer but too much ventilation can be just as bad if not worse. There is no risk of problems such a rust and bearing wear an tear as well when comparing it to other motorized ventilation alternatives. According to the article powered attic fans can create excess moisture structural problems and combustion safety in a home. The research concluded that if a powered attic ventilator will be used there must be a good air barrier between the living space and the attic.

Roof vents and power roof vents are made to work in conjunction with vented soffits so that outside air will replace superheated attic air during hot summer days. These are real problems from real houses that have really happened. I blogged about this earlier. Another would be backdrafting a water heater and putting carbon monoxide in the house.

Roof vents create an additional roof penetration essentially another place of vulnerability where leaks can occur. Problems and solutions mixed exhaust vents. I would look at a lot of problems and instantly point to insufficient roof ventilation as the cause and recommend more roof. For proper ventilation both high and low vents should be installed.

One potential problem would be sucking moist moldy air up from the crawl space intothe house. In researching the topic of attic ventilation in the past i figured out the building code rules worked well for roof pitches up to 6 12.