Attic Ventilation

The more houses that I inspect the more I find with problems with attic ventilation.  You may say, why is that such a big deal?  There are several reasons you want your attic to be ventilated properly.  Here are a few of the most important;

  1. Keep mold from becoming an issue.  Without proper ventilation/air flow you run the risk of mold growing on the underside of the roof sheathing.  Throw in a source of moisture and now you have a several thousand dollar remediation project on your hands.
  2. Get the most out of your shingles.  Without airflow cooling the underside of the shingles, you can cut 5 years off the life of your shingles.  Uninterrupted air flow from the soffit to the ridge vent is the best situation to keep the shingles cool.  Styrofoam baffles are a must at the intersection of the exterior wall and the eaves to keep the insulation from cutting off the airflow.
  3. Your bath vent fans must vent to the exterior of the home.  It is no longer acceptable to just vent them into the attic.  This excess moisture can be the ingredient to start the mold machine in action.  Get them to the eaves if you have perforated soffit or vent them out the roof.
  4. Make sure all the plumbing vents are vented through the roof.  You don’t want sewer gas in your attic and the moisture it can exhaust will also not help a poorly ventilated attic.  Don’t wait until you sell your house to find out you have poor attic ventilation.  Give me a call, I’ll be happy to stop by and take a look.

Styrofoam baffle