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Roof Intake and Outlet Vent Area Ratios for Proper Attic Venting
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• How to Specify the Proper Roof Intake and Outlet Vent Area Ratios to Stop Building Heat Loss and Provide Proper Attic Venting to Avoid Condensation, Ice Dam Leaks, Mold, & Roof Structure Damage
• How to detect roof venting deficiencies, attic insulation defects, and attic condensation problems

This article discusses How to Specify the Proper Roof Intake and Outlet Vent Area Ratios to Stop Building Heat Loss and Provide Proper Attic Venting to Avoid Condensation, Ice Dam Leaks, Mold, & Roof Structure Damage. Adding under-roof ventilation is usually a great idea, but if the relative sizes of the intake and outlet vents are not proper, the building will suffer increased heat loss and thus an unnecessarily high home heating bill.

This is a section of chapter 7, "How to Correct Improper or Inadequate Attic or Under-Roof Ventilation in Buildings", part of our discussion of "Attic Condensation". This article describes inspection methods and clues to detect roof venting deficiencies, insulation defects, and attic condensation problems in buildings. It describes proper roof ventilation placement, amounts, and other details.

These recommendations are based on 30 years of building inspections, on the observation of the locations of moisture, mold, ice dams, condensation stains, and other clues in buildings, and on the correlation of these clues with the roof venting conditions at those properties. I have also measured changes in airflow, temperature, and moisture before and after installing roof venting. More in-depth, un-biased, expert information on these topics and on building defect inspection, diagnosis, & repair can be found at "More Information below. © Copyright 2008 Daniel Friedman, All Rights Reserved. Information Accuracy & Bias Pledge is at below-left. Use links at the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website.

Vent Area Ratios: Attic Ventilation Soffit Intake to Ridge Outlet Air Flow or Square Inches Ratio

Continuous un-blocked soffit or eaves intake venting combined with continuous roof ridge venting (or equivalent area if the building framing does not permit a ridge vent) are needed to avoid ice dams, attic condensation, attic mold, rot, or insect damage from accumulating attic moisture.

But the ratio of intake air to outlet air is of critical importance too.

The ratio of soffit intake to roof outlet should be at least 2:1 to avoid unnecessary these heat losses from the building.

Roof intake venting with no outlet vent openings won't work because there will be no air flow through the roof cavity. In a few cases, very wide, open soffit vents at building eaves seem to result in a dry attic, but the design relies on a prevailing wind pattern that sends air through the attic. Even in this case most air flow will be across the attic floor, and an inspection of the attic near the ridge may reveal evidence of unwanted condensation and moisture staining or even attic mold.

Roof outlet venting with no intake venting won't work because the absence of sufficient intake of outside air to satisfy the negative pressure from air leaving at the ridge will cause draw warm air up from the building interior, increasing heating costs and possibly mold or allergen movement through the building.

Providing more soffit or eaves intake venting than ridge outlet venting assures that the airflow required by attic air exiting at the ridge is satisfied by incoming outside air rather than by pulling air up from the building where it not only brings up building moisture, it also increases building heating or cooling costs.

Technical Reviewers

Particular thanks are due to experts and also consumers who read these articles and suggest corrections, changes, and additions to the material. Content suggestions, technical corrections and content critique are invited for any of the content at our website.

• Alan Carson Carson Dunlop Associates, Toronto, Ontario. Mr. Carson is a home inspection professional, educator, researcher, writer, and a principal of Carson Dunlop Associates, a Toronto home inspection and education firm. Mr. Carson is a past president of ASHI, the American Society of Home Inspectors Some great illustrations of the proper under-roof ventilation pathways are offered by Carson Dunlop.Mark Cramer Inspection Services Mark Cramer, Tampa Florida, Mr. Cramer is a past president of ASHI, the American Society of Home Inspectors and is a Florida home inspector and home inspection educator. (727) 595-4211 mark@BestTampaInspector.com 11/06Daniel Friedman - principal author Daniel Friedman, editing, expanding, adding to comments from John Annunziata, P.E. - NY Metro ASHI informal chapter discussions.
• Technical reviewers are invited to comment or ask questions - contact us

Use links just below or at the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website. If you just "scroll down" you'll miss some important articles. See links at page left.

MOISTURE, MOLD, ICE DAM LEAKS in ATTICS & ROOFS
Attic Condensation
Inspect Building Exterior
Comparing Two Houses
Inspect Basements for Moisture or Mold
Inspect Attics for Moisture or Mold
Inspect the Ridge Vent System from the Attic
Inspect the Soffit Vent System from the Attic
Blocked Soffit Intake Vents
Correcting Roof Ventilation
Ridge and Eaves Venting Both Needed
Continuous Soffit Intake Venting Needed
Proper Roof Vent Location
Roof Vent Area Ratios
Un-Vented Roof Solutions
Air Bypass Leaks, Thermal Tracking

More Information on Effects of Building Moisture & Building Diagnostic Inspections and Repairs

More Reading about Dealing with Attic Mold, Identifying, Removing, and Preventing Mold in Attics

Be sure to review HOW TO FIND MOLD: How to Inspect Homes and Other Buildings for Mold - the Basics of How to Find Problem Mold Indoors in our Mold Action Guide. Here are other articles that will be helpful in evaluating attic mold presence, causes, and cures:

• What Mold and Allergens Look Like: mold identification photos to help identify mold - choosing what to sample in buildings
• How to Clean Moldy Wood Framing & Sheathing How to clean/seal mold from/on exposed lumber or plywood subfloor or roof sheathing indoors - some suggestions based on our field and laboratory research
• Lighting, proper use of: proper aiming of a good flashlight can disclose hard to see but toxic light or white mold colonies on walls.
• Mold spores in the Home - a Photo ID Library for detection and identification of mold allergens.
• How to Find and Test For Mold in Buildings A "how to" photo and text primer on finding and choosing the right spots to test for mold in buildings
• Stuff that is not mold but is often mistaken for it - things you may not want to test. Also, not all "black mold" is toxic - here are examples of harmless black mold.
• Simple Adhesive Tape Sampling of Moldy Surfaces - how to send a mold sample to our lab
• Mold Sampling Methods in the Indoor Environment - In-depth article: detailed critique of popular mold testing methods - Is your mold test kit worth the bother?
• Humidity: What indoor humidity should we maintain in order to avoid a mold problem?
• Mold-Resistant Building Practices, advice from an expert on how to prevent mold after a building flood and how to prevent mold growth in buildings by selection of building materials and by anti-mold construction details.

InspectAPedia ^TM Home & Site Map - Building Inspection, Diagnosis, & Repair, Environmental Inspection & Testing - Research Website

The Mold Information Center: What to Do About Mold in Buildings, When and How to Inspect for Mold, Clean Up Mold, or Avoid Mold Problems

Home Inspection Construction Consulting Services & advice for home buyers

Use this simple, economical mold test kit by following our instructions on how to collect and mail mold samples to our lab

Environmental Inspection, Testing, & Diagnosis On-Site IAQ, Gas, Air Testing, Mold Investigation, Sick Building Diagnosis, Lab Services, & Remediation Plan Preparation - indoor air quality testing, problem source determination, supporting lab work, written remediation plan addressing removal of environmental and other hazards and prevention of their recurrence.

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