You can't have bats in your belfrey if there's no air in your attic!

In this article I am going to tackle a subject which most people don't know much about. The symptoms that show from the actual problem, quite often get diagnosed as separate issue's, which just leads to fixing a problem which isn't really there. We are talking about proper attic ventilation. Sounds sexy doesn't it? I know, Joan Rivers in a thong sounds sexier than this topic, but trust me it is necessary. Poor attic ventilation can lead to problems like, Water stained ceilings, mouldy or rotten roof sheathing, ice damming and wet attic insulation which leads to loss of R value. Proper attic ventilation should look something like... This!
Note the free and clear soffit vent, (That's the part of the roof which sticks out from the wall, when you look straight up from the outside.) the unobstructed path of air flow along the rafter/truss (depending on which you have). The roof vent is also high enough up on the roof line to allow as much ventilation as possible, without making it look like your house is wearing a hat like a 17 year old kid. If you are wondering what that pink thing is, stop it, I can hear you from here. No, kidding, that wonderful little piece of styrofoam is called an Insul-stop. They are also known as baffles. They can also be made out of waxed cardboard which are usually sized specifically for the main 2 distances between rafters/trusses where the styrofoam ones are usually meant to fit directly on the roof sheathing, in between the trusses/rafters. When it comes to the roof vent itself, there are a few options. First we have the standard "top hat" style roof vent. This looks much like it sounds, a square top hat. Then we have Ridge vents, which as it sounds, vents out through the ridge or peak of the roof. This style is exceptional because there is very little air which is not vented and it runs the length of the roof, much like the soffit vent so the entire attic gets air flow. These are the main two types of venting found in Manitoba, however there are others.
As shown in the picture, there are a few styles of fan powered vents. You can even get vent fans that are solar powered so there is no need to hook electrical up to them from the main electrical box. There is another type of vent that I did want to touch on. If you happen to be getting a roof redone, and the roofer says that you can keep that old turbine style vent, say NO! Those turbines are no good, they rust, the bearings seize, and you get next to no ventilation out of them. Every time you change your shingles replace the roof vents. It will save you headaches in the long run. If you stick with the basic 75 square inch plastic top hat style roof vent, they usually only run around 10 dollars a piece anyway, and since the average price of getting a roof redone runs around the 5000 dollar mark, it's not that big of a hit. Any questions? Feel free to email me, mrkulukuku@gmail.com, or click the link to the E-mail at the top right corner.

Happy Building!