How To Tell If Your Roof Has Soffit Vents

Let owens corning roofing help you calculate exactly how much ventilation you will need for a healthy and balanced attic with our 4 step ventilation calculator.

How to tell if your roof has soffit vents.

Enter square footage calculate or enter the square footage of the attic or area to be vented. Most effective ventilation uses a ridge and soffit continuous ventilation system but even these designs can vary from roof to roof. If you don t know how your roof vents work or if you re unsure about your attic ventilation in general you should talk to a roof inspector about your current system and any inherent weaknesses that may be at. Grab a flashlight and inspect your attic during the winter.

Vents come in various styles. Roof ridge vents are placed along the ridge line of the roof. How to check attic ventilation. Static vents are also called louvered or turbine vents.

An important part of installing any system of ventilation into your roof system is to make sure that there is a point of entry and a point of exit for airflow. Ridge vents are used for exhaust or outflow of moisture heat and stale air. To achieve the best ventilation intake at the eaves must be balanced with the exhaust through roof vents at the peak. A soffit vent is simply a vent installed into the underside of your home s eaves called the soffit that permits fresh outside air to be drawn up into the attic.

If you see dampness or frost you need better roof ventilation and some attic vents. The air comes through the eaves and then goes out through peak vents at the top. The soffit vents allow convective air movement from the. These specialty vents do not affect the.

Almost all homes are fitted with some kind of roof vents at the peak of the roofline be it individual roof vents hip roof ventilation and many homes have gable vents as well. Moreover if you have asphalt shingles on the roof attic. Rafter vents or insulation baffles install in any rafter space to create narrow gaps that direct fresh air from the soffit vents to the peak of the roof. Soffit isn t necessarily vented at all but if a home has attractive roof overhangs it usually presents an opportunity to introduce air into the attic space and facilitate natural ventilation.

To avoid rotting wood clumping insulation and mold your attic needs to be properly ventilated. If you live in an older home your roof might not be constructed for roof ridge or soffit vents. Screens have to be installed at the openings to keep out bugs. As a homeowner it is important that you review the soffit areas of the home for soffit vents.

They go on top of the roof and are cheap to put in. Soffit vents and eaves are placed at the lower extremes of the roof and provide the intake ventilation.