Colonial Gambrel Roof ventilation questions

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drewdin

drewdin

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Hi All,

I just purchased an old Colonial Gambrel house (1927) and the roof needs to be replaced. Right now there is Zero ventilation in the roof, its completely sealed. I talked to the roofer who suggested that I put in a ridge vent and a roof fan, but due to the style of the house I cant put in soffet vents.

Will the ridge vent and roof fan be sufficient? Since I am doing the roof over now I would prefer to do as much as I can to make it right.

Any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
 
You can use a vented drip edge at the transition of the gambrel to the upper roof and ridge vent at the top. NEVER use ridge vent in combination with a power vent. And :welcome: to House Repair Talk!
 
Posting a picture of your home would sure help.

The reason Old Dog said that is a power vent will do nothing but suck air in through the ridge vent since that's it's closest source of air.
Not going to help with making the attic cooler, or getting rid of the moist air that's trapped there.
 
Hey guys, thanks for the quick responses! I'm a first time home buyer and learning about houses as I go.

I took some pictures of the house today, how do I know if there is air space between the insulation and the roof sheeting? I do know that there is horsehair plaster throughout the house so its not easy to open anything and take a peek. How can I check for the air space, any suggestions? Thanks again

https://www.dropbox.com/s/4udovl76ups6xmd/2012-08-10%2015.38.13.jpg
 
I checked out those smart vents, they look pretty awesome. How do I know how many I need?
 
Measure the lenght of the roof and devide by 4.
There not suppost to be installed all the way to the ends of the roof so round down when coming up with a number.
Your also going to need some 3" roofing nails, some vents come with the nails but check before leaving the store.
Your also going to need some ridge caps, one bundle of caps will do about 23 liner ft. of roof. I suggest not using cut up 3 tab shingles there to thin and tend to crack over time. Buy real hip and ridge caps. Yes there more expencive, but worth it.
 
thanks guys, i called DCI and found a local roofer who is going to install some smart vents. Thanks for all the help
 
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