Attic Ventilation System

Attic Ventilation & Insulation to Prevent Attic Frost and Attic Rain

Attic ventilation is important, yet often neglected, an issue affecting our home’s preservation. The building codes passed regarding attic ventilation are rarely enforced and often ignored. Nearly all homes in our area, both old and new, suffer from the effects of poor attic ventilation. In the summer, attic temperatures can soar beyond 160 degrees Fahrenheit. This heat broils the living space in your home and bakes the life out of your shingles. In fact, shingle warranties are void without adequate intake and exhaust venting, and in some cases, insurance will not even cover due to poor ventilation into the attic. The cold, winter weather creates condensation in your attic which leads to mould, and trapped heat will create ice dams and then we have Chinook after a cold period of weather, and now all the frost is going to melt and convert into the attic rain.

Many people do not realize that, by definition, asphalt & membrane roofs are similar to putting a plastic bag over your home, suffocating it. That is why proper attic ventilation both high & low, is critical to the health of your home.

Improper attic ventilation can rot your roof deck, shorten the life of your roof, cause curling or cupped shingles, degrade your insulation, cause paint to peel and blister, create an environment for mold, reduce your comfort level, overwork your heating/cooling system, and is one of the major causes of ice dams.

It is important to determine the right amount of ventilation for homes. Most homes today are not ventilated to minimum CHBA standards. That means relatively little intake and exhaust ventilation in the attic. Power ventilators, roof vents, gable vents, bathroom exhaust roof caps, under eaves and soffit vents can provide adequate ventilation, which in return will cut your energy bills, provide for a cooler home and prolong the life of shingles, rafters, insulation, and ceilings. Ventilation products also reduce harmful winter moisture and ice damming, so the roof and the home are protected year round.

Our attic inspectors are trained to recognize and recommend solutions for homes with inadequate attic ventilation.

Attic Ventilation

A properly balanced system of both soffit intake venting in the eaves and exhaust venting on the roof will cycle air through the attic to keep it cooler in the summer and drier in the winter. This will extend the life of your shingles, reduce your air conditioning expense, improve your family’s comfort and help prevent attic mold and ice dams.

Insulation baffles create a channel for the air entering your soffit vents to get past the insulation and into your attic cavity. Most homes have few if any, baffles and they are often installed improperly.

Insulation in the attic floor should not touch the underside of the roof at the eaves.  If it does, there is potential for blocking the ventilation path and condensation on the roof wetting the insulation.  Use vent chutes or baffles so that outside air can stay above the insulation layer.  Make sure the insulation is installed so that cold air from the soffits cannot get under the insulation.

Have Lots Of Air Flow

It’s important to make sure that there is plenty of air-intake as well, through the soffit vents. The more soffit venting, and ridge venting the better. When we have blow in more Loose fill in your attic, we also make sure to use rafter (baffles) venting. There should also be plenty of incoming air and plenty of roof venting (air-output) so that the attic will “breathe” well and it won’t become hot or rot.

It’s also important to mention that the lack of proper ventilation can bring moisture problems into the attic of your house that inadvertently can cause problems with the integrity of your house’s structure: the trusses, rafters, and support beams will get wet and start to rot.