Attic Ridge Vent Effectiveness

Figure courtesy of air vent inc.

Attic ridge vent effectiveness.

It also works better because it creates a vacuum. The downside of attic ventilation fans. Intake vents located at the lowest part of the roof under the eaves allow cool. A ridge vent runs across the top of the roof s peak.

One of the great things about a ridge vent is that it is at the topmost point of your roof with hot air constantly rising it is bound to make it way out of the top of your vents thus bringing in cooler air through your soffit vents and into your roof cooling it down. Without baffles blinders that prevent outside air from crossing over the vent a ridge vent may create almost no ventilation at all. You will also discover that this product can work by itself to release moisture from the house which is especially useful during the winter months. That means you have a lower risk of mold or mildew development.

A ridge vent is similar to a screen and allows heat to escape up and out of the attic. Attic ventilation fans whether hard wired or powered by their own solar panels seem like a low cost and effective way to help keep your house cool. Continuous ridge vents are more effective because they are installed at the peak of a roof s ridge allowing for warm air to escape from the attic. Hvi recommends a ratio of 60 to 40 for soffit ventilation to gable or ridge ventilation.

Roof ridge vents do work well when there are soffit vents or box vents that help to draw air into the attic. The majority of roofing experts agree that ridge vents are the most effective and cost effective roof vents available. Since there isn t any provision for the intake of air the ridge vent is basically ineffective. Gable vents may circulate air through only a small percentage of your attic.

It has the ability to work with vaulted ceilings and you only need one of them to get the job done for ventilation as compared to multiple box vents. Unlike turbines this venting style does not have any moving parts. Figure 5 ridge vent vs. The uniform building code requires that the amount of venting area in the attic be equal to 1 150 of the area of the floor and in most circumstances it allows a ratio of 1 300 if the venting area.

A ridge vent installed along a roof s peak will move hot and humid air up and out of the attic.