Attic Ventilation In Albany, New York

Proper Attic Ventilation Is The Key To A Comfortable Home

Attic ventilation is an important part of your roofing system and overall building health. Proper attic ventilation can help prevent heat and moisture buildup within your home. In a climate like New York's where we can get very warm and very cold weather throughout the year attic ventilation becomes even more important to control the climate within our home.

Epic Building Solutions is a full service insulation contractor based out of Albany, New York and serving the surrounding area. We specialize in installing attic ventilation into our customers homes.

Attic ventilation is important because:

  • It helps create a cooler attic in the summer which can reduce cooling costs.
  • It helps to create a "dry" environment in your attic which can prevent ice dams in the winter.
  • An overheated attic, combined with humidity/moisture, can damage roof decking and roofing shingles, causing them to distort and deteriorate prematurely.
  • Air circulation and moisture control are both critical in preventing mold and mildew issues within your home.

Good ventilation serves two main functions:
  • Moves hot air next to the roof deck and out of the attic in the summer.
  • Dilutes and removes the moist air in the winter before it can cause damage.

There are many different types of roofing ventilation

When we think of attic ventilation there are two functions we need to accomplish. Those are intake and exhaust. We need to expel the hot or moisture laden air and replace it with fresh cool air from outside. Any imbalance between the two will cause issues within your attic space.

Ridge Vents - Ridge vents are one of the most commonly installed exhaust vents, especially on new homes. A ridge vent runs along the entire span of your roof line, right at the peak. Because a ridge vent is positioned at the roof's highest point, they are in the best position to let the hottest air escape from your attic space. Because they run across your entire roof line, they also have the surface area for expelling large amounts of hot air.

Static Vents (Box Vents) - These are the least expensive option but only provide ventilation in the immediate area where they are installed.

Gable Vents - The wind must blow directly into one vent in order to get the air flowing across the attic and out the other vent. This can be improved with the use of vent fans.

Turbine Vents - Experience the same problems as the static vents where they really only ventilate the immediate area around the vent but they do generate a greater airflow than a static attic ventilation installation.

Power Fans - They provide a high airflow. However, they take energy to operate so they can create an ongoing electricity expense. Also, fans controlled by a thermostat will usually operate only in the summer. These fans do nothing to remove the moist air that gets in the attic during cold months.

Soffit Vents - These are situated at the bottom of your roof on the underside of your roof overhang. They are primarily used for "intake" air. As the hot air rises and flows out of your vents on the rooftop the soffit vents allow for new, fresh air to enter the building.

The team at Epic Building Solutions can complete a ventilation assessment on your home or building to determine the best course of action to improve the ventilation in your attic and roof space. We are experienced professionals and in most cases will be able to drastically improve the comfort of your home with an attic ventilation installation.

If you'd like to receive an estimate for attic ventilation installation for your New York home please give us a call (518) 801-0809 or fill out our online form and someone will get back to you quickly.