Is Your Roof Properly Ventilated?

The roof is the most important protector of your home. Excess heat and moisture can wreak havoc in your home. Having proper ventilation in your attic can not only mitigate those dangers and reduce utility bills, but can also lengthen the life of your roof.

Airflow

The optimal situation is to have the temperature and humidity level in the attic closely match the conditions outdoors. Warm air rises whether from sun in the summer or through your home heating system. Either time, it is important that cool air can circulate through the attic to keep the internal and external conditions as close as possible. For this reason, it is a good idea to have air entering near the eaves and exiting near the peak causing a good airflow.

What Happens When Your Attic Does Not Have Good Ventilation?

When moisture is trapped in the attic, condensation can form on the roof framing and sheathing. Over time, this can cost rot and structural damage to your home. Large amounts of condensation can even drip through the ceiling into the rest of your house causing further damage.

When an attic is not properly ventilated in the winter, it becomes much warmer than the outdoors, even warm enough to melt snow on the roof. As the snow melts it starts to pool over the eaves and then freezes back up again potentially causing an ice dam. Once that occurs, the water has no place to go except back up under the shingles cause a multitude of problems.

How to Tell if Your Ventilation is Adequate?

One sure sign of attic ventilation issues is when you notice that all of your neighbors still have snow on their roofs but yours does not. While your house may just have more sun exposure, it may also be an indication that your attic is warmer than it should be. Poor ventilation or inadequate insulation may be the culprit.

Keep an eye on your soffit vents to ensure they are not plugged or covered by insulation, debris or cobwebs.

How Does Good Attic Ventilation Save Money?

Attics get very warm in the summer since they are super-heated by the sun and that heat can transfer down into your home. Good ventilation will help keep the attic cooler. That in combination with the right amount of insulation can help with HVAC costs.

While shingles are built to last for years, but heat will slowly degrade them. Ventilation can help reduce that heat especially in hot, sunny climates hopefully giving your roof a longer life. Many roof warranties depend on the installation of proper ventilation.

Contact Us Today

Not all roofing issues are obvious to the nonprofessional. Just because there is not a current leak does not mean that your roof is necessarily sound or that it has other issues. Experienced professionals like The Northface Roofing Company can provide you with sound advice based on years of experience with exceptional customer service. Contact us today. In MA, call 774-203-9998 or in CT, call 860-255-8668.