The guide to the Advantages and Needs of Ventilation of Attics to save the roofs and also Save Energy.

Why do attics need to be vented and why did older homes and buildings did not have their attics vented?

So we will study the Advantages and the NEED of the Ventilation of Attics in modern homes and buildings.

1 - First to SAVE Energy in summer cooling. Further, we will study the need of insulation and the venting of attics for cold or freezing weather. Definitely for what can happen to attics in cold climates if there is no ventilation.

Can frost accumulation develop in the attic?

Why is my roof leaking? It is new!

In melting weather, what happens to the accumulated ice in the attic?

Where does the water comes from?

We will review this.

2 - Secondly venting attics lengthens the Life of roofs by letting the accumulation of heat out of the attics.

3 - It protects from Efflorescence (whitening of red brick) of older brick walls.

4 - Stop the popping-up of the mortar holding the bricks at the tops of the walls near the roofs.

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We study together the ventilation of attics in:

Older Homes, older Buildings and their Attics.

Check what is IN the attics of Older Homes and Buildings and what needs to be done before adding Ridge Vents and Goose Necks as roof outlets for the ventilation of attics.

And the KEY ROLE of the “Invention of Insulation” and it's utilization.

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Why add ridge VENTS to roofs and INSULATION to attics?

The ventilation of attics is relatively recent.

It has begun around 1975 with flat vents, then with turbines in 1985 and fixed louvered towers around 2005 except for hay barns. The purpose is, in summer, to keep the "cold inside" and the "Heat Outside".

Before the availability of "modern Insulations", attics where sealed as much as possible and there was no air circulation.

Everyone knows what is a THERMOS and what happens when a thermos seal is broken.

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Older homes had their attics sealed. The results was: Heat accumulation in the attics and very warm buildings in summer.

It is not only the fact that heat hits a roof that cause the destruction of shingles or flat roof membranes, it is the accumulation of heat in the attic.

With the accumulation of heat in the attics, there is a rapid deterioration of the roofs shingles or flat roofs and the top floor of buildings is extremely hot. This is the reason of the importance of the ventilation of attics.

Condensation and frost develop in the attic in winter and the humidity freezes at the perimeter walls at the attic level.

Major ice-cycles develop at the edges of roofs.

Sometimes, the humidity descends behind the brick walls turning the brick white with EFFLORESCENCE and then, there is deterioration of the bricks themselves and the mortar of the joints "pop-out".

Brick joints have to be re-pointed with mortar every 10 to 15 years.

Without ventilation of attics, the overheating of the attic and roof is worse if there is not a good thickness of crushed stone laid on the impervious membrane to dissipate the sun heat.

These situations often lead to the need to change the roof every 15 to 20 years.

Now, the available improvements that make venting the roofs possible:

Availability of "Modern Insulations".

Availability of modern ATTIC VENTS.

With the invention and manufacturing of modern insulation, it gives the possibility to insulate the attics from the cold in winter and from the heat in summer.

Now, the Attics can be opened up to Ventilation.

Before that, you could not Vent Attics even if some did it, as they did not understand they where braking the thermos effect and that it would cost much more energy in winter, as there was NO or VERY LITTLE insulation in Attics since it did not exist before 1965, it was simply not invented yet.

Why?

Because the Thermos Effect is broken and without proper and sufficent Insulation, the HOME or Building looses enormous energy. Heating in winter "sometimes" cost more than the monthly rent.

To pay more than $1,000.00 per apartments for centrally heated buildings is an indication of this situation.

The only Advantage to the addition of attic vents is to vent the attics to dissipate the Accumulation of HEAT in Summer and to PROLONG the LIFE of the ROOF.

SO, now with the invention of Modern Insulations in the 1950, it is possible and greatly Advisable to use the Ventilation of Attics.

The result, now only: The Possibility to have air circulation in the attic by the use of Attic Vents.

Now it was possible to vent properly the attics to dissipate the heat in summer, and in winter, to circulate air in the attic to vent out the humidity causing Frost.

In many home attics, one can see the rust around the roof nails protruding through the roof structure.

In addition, in Buildings with Flat Roofs, You can see this humidity, freezing behind; the brick walls and cause EFFLORESCENCE.

It was the main cause of the brick joints to pop out and of the whitening of brick walls called "Efflorescence".

Now, lets see how "Attic Vents Function" and the physical Principles they are built on. Return to Home Page from Ventilation of Attics.