Not sure if you need to improve your attic ventilation? Try touching your ceiling on a sunny day. If the ceiling is hot, your attic is likely acting as a solar oven. And as you may know, this can lead to a lot of unwanted consequences. For example, it can cook your shingles and raise your energy bills.

Poor attic ventilation can also cause problems during winter. For starters, any warm air that escapes from rooms bellow will get trapped in the attic. This will cause the snow on the eaves to melt, creating ice dams.

In other words: Proper attic ventilation plays a key role in prolonging the lifespan of your roof!

Want to know how to improve it and plan on doing the job yourself? Try these tips.

Ways to Improve Your Attic Ventilation

Develop a Plan

Before you start drilling holes in your roof, make sure you know how many vents you need. Consider:

  • As a general rule, one vent opening (1 sq. ft.) should cover 150 sq. ft. of your attic. You can determine your attic area by multiplying the width with the length. For instance, a 25 x 35-ft attic has an area of 875 sq. ft.
  • For best results, place soffit vents in your eaves and roof vents near the roof’s peak. That way, the air will flow in through the soffit vents and leave through the roof vents.
  • As for the necessary materials, they’re available at any home center. Other than the vents themselves, you should buy several 1/2 in. galvanized screws and 1-1/4 in. roofing nails. While you’re at it, get some roofing cement and a dust mask.

Install Roof Vents

Once you know where to want your attic vents to be, you need to cut the holes and install them.

If you’re looking to mark the venting locations, do it from the attic. You can see the rafters from there, which will help you avoid placing the vents over them. As for marking the locations, drive some nails through the shingles.

Also, don’t forget to remove any obstructions after cutting a vent hole. To do that, slip a pry bar under the shingles and remove the self-sealing adhesive. If there are any loose shingle nails, remove them as well.

Install Soffit Vents

Compared to roof vents, soffit vents are a bigger challenge.

Ideally, you should place the same number of soffit vents on each side of the house. Remember, seams and nails in the soffit indicate framing locations. While you’re marking your cutting lines, avoid the framing.

If your attic is well-insulated, the air may not reach the roof vents from the soffit vents. The best solution is to add some baffles, which you can also find at home centers. Baffles allow air to glide past insulation, but installing them can be tricky.

Get Expert Care for Your Attic Ventilation

As you can see, installing attic ventilation isn’t a walk in the park. And you certainly don’t want to risk damaging something as valuable as your home if you don’t have the requisite skills and experience. If you don’t feel comfortable with a jig saw, your best bet is to leave this task to professionals.

Does your attic ventilation need work? Or do you have other roofing service needs? Contact us today for a free quote. We provide commercial and residential roofing services in Milwaukee and throughout the area.