Venting covered porch roof

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donald73d

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The asphalt shingles on the covered porch roof are looking 5X as bad as the rest of the main roof. While I suppose they could be much older I suspect they are the same age. I am thinking the problem is the porch roof needs to be vented where it attaches to the main house. What kind of venting to use?

This is a normal front porch (with roof) attached to a colonial house. Cedar siding.
 
If you don't have adequate pitch on the roof over the porch, the asphalt shingles will in fact age prematurely.
 
If you don't have adequate pitch on the roof over the porch, the asphalt shingles will in fact age prematurely.

Pitch over 2/12 shouldn't have much effect on the life cycle of the shingle. Less than a 2/12 shouldn't have shingles applied, period. More important is adequate ventilation. Overhanging vegetation, orientation to the sun will also play into the performance of the shingle. Having an Algae Resistant (AR) shingle will help reduce organic growth. Airborne dirt will cause the roof to appear discolored.
 
You can just uses a box vent or two near the top and you need some openings near the gutter in the soffet area.
 
If you have a colonial with a covered porch, I'll assume it's a 2 story house with a porch roof scabbed onto the side. While there are very valid reasons to vent a roof over enclosed living spaces, doing it for an open porch roof is a waste of time and money.
Frankly, there is plenty of debate out there about how much a vented roof/attic actually contributes to the life of a roof's shingles. Most would argue..very little.
The reason the porch roof looks worse is probably the previous owner paid to have the upper roof done because it's more critical and more expensive.
The porch roof could always wait.
 
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