Attic ventilation is an important part of your home’s design and construction.

• In the summer, attic ventilation can help prevent heat buildup, which will help make your living areas cooler and more comfortable, help reduce air conditioning costs and help prevent roof shingle deterioration.  The major shingle manufacturers require attic ventilation to validate the shingle warranty.

• In the winter, attic ventilation can help prevent moisture buildup, which will help prevent wood rot, mold, mildew, and poor indoor air quality.

Your attic needs equal intake and exhaust ventilation. Research has shown that the best way to ventilate an attic is with a balanced system of intake vents low at the roof’s edge or in the soffit/eaves, along with exhaust vents high on the roof at or near the ridge. This allows cool, dry intake air at the roof’s edge to flush out any warm, moist air through the exhaust vents. Be sure your attic has enough intake vents. They are crucial to the attic ventilation system and often overlooked.

Indications that your attic might have a ventilation problem include:

• Wet or compressed insulation
• Rusty nails
• Rusty spots that dripped onto your insulation
• Blackened plywood
• Mold or mildew inside your attic
• Curling or cracking shingles
• Uneven snow melt/icicles at the roof edge