Roof Ventilation

Attic ventilation is the most underrated factor in roof lifespan. A poorly-ventilated attic traps moisture in winter (which wrecks insulation and rots decking) and heat in summer (which ages shingles prematurely). Either way, the brand-new roof you just installed can lose ten years of useful life in just a few seasons.

The principle is simple: air has to enter through the soffits at the bottom of the roof and exit at the top, either through a ridge vent, static vents (Maximum boxes, turtle vents), or turbines. That continuous air movement carries away the moisture and heat that would otherwise build up.

Ventilation isn't about installing more vents — it's about balance. A roof with lots of exit vents but blocked soffits doesn't ventilate properly, no matter how many vents you add. Likewise, clear soffits without adequate exit create a stagnant chamber where hot, humid air sits.

We calculate the net free area (NFA) required for your attic per the rules (1/300 of the attic floor for balanced ventilation), then size the intakes and exhausts to hit that ratio. It's science, not guesswork.

We also check whether your existing soffits are blocked by insulation overflow — an extremely common problem in attics that were insulated without installing baffles.

Several signs can point to bad attic ventilation. In winter: huge icicles at the eavestroughs, ice dams, frost on nails poking through the decking, visible moisture on the insulation. In summer: an abnormally hot upper floor, shingles that seem to age faster on certain roof sections.

If you see one or more of these signs, don't wait. Bad ventilation causes cumulative damage: every winter and every summer, your roof and insulation degrade a little more. Fixing the problem fast saves a lot of money in future repairs.

Our interventions range from adding a few extra vents to a complete redesign of an attic's ventilation system. We always pick the simplest, least invasive solution that'll fix the problem for good.