Roof ridge vents help to effectively prolong and protect a homeowner’s roof and overall structural integrity of their home from common culprits such as moisture and excessive heat. Ridge vents have become increasingly popular in recent years, for good reason. Roof ridge vents areImage may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
an effective technology that many homeowners are unaware of or relatively uninformed about. Let’s compare ridge ventilation to other forms of attic ventilation.
The four main sources of roof ventilation are: basic roof vents or “box” vents, wind turbines or “spinning” vents, power vents and ridge vents.
Roof vents are covered fixed vents, which prevent rain from seeping in and are relatively easy to install. Because they have no mechanical parts, you don’t have to worry about malfunctions. The weakness with basic vents are that they are not at the highest point of the attic to allow all of the hot air to escape and most homes do not have enough of these vents. They are also a decidedly unattractive addition to your home.
Wind turbine vents are installed near the roof peak and work by catching the wind or by air rising through the turbine. This causes the vanes to spin and provides effective ventilation near the top of the house by drawing heat and moisture out. One of the problems with these vents is that high winds can cause excessive spinning and wearing of bearings. Also, they can be very noisy if not maintained regularly. In the absence of wind, they are less effective and are terribly unattractive.
Power vents are a generally effective form of attic ventilation. They, armed with a thermostat and sometimes a humidistat, literally suck the hot air out of the attic and the fresh air into the attic through the soffit vents. When they have both a thermostat and a humidistat, they are very effective. If they only have a thermostat, they are only effective in the summer. In the winter, moisture can build up in the attic if the power vent is not running. While power vents are a good option for attic ventilation, their biggest weakness is that they require maintenance and eventually need motor repairs or replacement.
Ridge vents are the most effective overall ventilation system. They span the entire gable roof ridge, creating a balanced ventilation system. When a ventilation system is balanced, wind blowing over the ridge creates a negative pressure that draws the warmer air out of the attic. Replacement air enters through the under eave vents, bathes the underside of the roof, and exits at the ridge cap. Even with no wind, the natural convection action of rising warm air maintains a continuous air flow along the underside of the roof. There are no moving parts, therefore no maintenance or parts to repair or replace, nor do they make any noise. Finally, most homeowners prefer the look of the ridge vent as it blends in seamlessly with the rest of the roof.
