# Venting ideas, no soffit to speak of, not sure to trust Smart Vent??



## Tom M (Jan 3, 2007)

I used the smart vent on a 3 pitch 2 ft up from the eave even though the company says no less than a 4. I was worried about snow potiential but had no problems a year later. 

I have my doubts on the fascia vents besides the fact you have to screw with all the siding and gutters to vent the roof most eaves have a low heal cut with jambed insulation on the ends. 

In theory its a fine idea but with the high probability of the insulation I would use the gable vents as intake and install a fan. It will bring down the temps, there will be some stagnant air in the corners but those temps will lower.


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## Ed the Roofer (Dec 12, 2006)

I'll dig up some photos of a recent repair customers home we worked on that only had his front dormer unvented and show the internal humidity stains that built up inside looking like a severe roof leak.

Excessive insulation, without ventilation will damper down the temperature fluctuations, but do nothing at all to alleviate the internally trapped humidity component.

The photos are still on my cameras memory chip and still need to be uploaded and labeled though.

Ed


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## odellconstruct (Mar 27, 2008)

Vealchop said:


> Crap, I wrote a whole damn explanation / reply / question, and I guess it times out if you don't post fast enough???
> 
> I was thinking wired over solar because if I run them off of thermostat / humidistat, they will run all 4 seasons also, hopefully taking care of heat AND humidity in the attic. The house has LOTS of tree cover, so solar would only be effective a couple hours a day.
> 
> A little more info...I bought the house with a major remodel in mind in 2-3 years. So I was hoping to get by (roof included) without spending too much now. Just pretty it up with paint and trim for now. Well turns out the roof is too bad, leaks everywhere, so I have to choice. I don't want to spend too much now, and then do it again in 2-3 years. Thats why I think my roofer is recommending fans instead of more costly, and more "permanent" fixes. With this in mind, what would you recommend?


protect your investment by doing the work correctly and the right way .. providing money is not a issue .. remove entire roof and frame out new roof with a proper vented soffit and ridge ..and gable vents if needed .. then you will have a roof that will last and add value to your home .. money well spent .. or the less costly way add a soffit "like most modular homes " to have a vented system .. with continous ventulation from soffit to ridge ..


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## Vealchop (Jul 24, 2010)

Thanks for all the input, very much appreciated. I priced out the addition of a soffit, and its just not possible right now, not that I don't think it's worth it, I feel its the best option for many reasons, not the least of which is asthetics. 

Ok don't flame me for this, but having lost some sleep over all the options, just a theoretical question...

I can understand not wanting to depressurize the attic space, with an exhaust fan and insufficient intake, although I don't think I'd have that problem. But what about the opposite. What if a ridge vent is added, and the gable fans at opposite ends of the house were both used as Intake?? Purposely pressurizing the attic and pushing all the hot air at the peak OUT...??


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## Tom M (Jan 3, 2007)

You accomplish the same things as a single fan drawing air from the gable vents only your powering to fans than may lock each other out and just make noise.


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## seeyou (Dec 12, 2008)

Vealchop said:


> I can understand not wanting to depressurize the attic space, with an exhaust fan and insufficient intake, although I don't think I'd have that problem. But what about the opposite. What if a ridge vent is added, and the gable fans at opposite ends of the house were both used as Intake?? Purposely pressurizing the attic and pushing all the hot air at the peak OUT...??


Might work, might not. Might create some sort of weird venturi in your attic that would sling your house and the contents into another dimension or alternate universe. 

I'm a big proponent of ridge venting. However, I don't like to see it used in conjunction with fans in most cases. And I don't like fans without mucho inlet. I can't imagine your idea would work any better than Grumpy's push/pull idea, but it would certainly be more expensive.

Here's what I'd do in this scenario: Try the push/pull deal. If it doesn't work to your satisfaction, flip one of the fans around and add the ridge vent. If you and your house disappear suddenly, we'll know what happened.


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## QurlyQue (Nov 19, 2012)

The assumption is that the house has eaves or at least something that could be considered eaves. What if the roof is all gables? Ridge vents or gable vents are okay for the exhaust but how do you get air low in the gables?


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