How To Vent An Attic Fan

Whole house fans powered attic fans.

How to vent an attic fan.

An attic fan works by exchanging the hot air in your attic space for fresh air pulled through the vents. This in turn can help save money on your heating and cooling costs. Attic ventilation fans whether hard wired or powered by their own solar panels seem like a low cost and effective way to help keep your house cool. Venting a homes attic is a very important best building practices will say 50 at the ridge and 50 at the soffits unobstructed.

Adding attic vents is a simple matter of cutting holes and installing vents. Attic fans are intended to cool hot attics by drawing in cooler outside air from attic vents soffit and gable and pushing hot air to the outside. Whole house fans work on the principle of removing the hot and humid air out of the house. As a certified licensed home inspector it is not correct to say too much ventilation is bad for an attic unless rain moisture is getting in.

The master flow erv6 power roof vent is the master flow erv6 power roof vent is a great overall investment in attic ventilation. It can efficiently remove a larger volume of hot and or humid air from your attic when compared to static ventilation. Do not use mechanical means electric attic fans. These fans may be controlled by a switch or a thermostat which detects heat build up in the attic space and automatically exhausts the attic space.

One static vent style is the turbine vent which uses wind to power its enclosed fan all it takes is a light breeze to rotate the blades and suck heat out of the attic view example on the home. However the utility of attic ventilation fans is actually quite a controversial topic. The whole house fan is installed inside the attic between the living space and ceiling. When venting a bathroom exhaust fan make sure to vent the air to the outside rather than into your attic where it can cause mold and mildew to form.

Photos 1 6 show how it s done. Options for venting a bathroom exhaust fan include best to worst. The downside of attic ventilation fans. But before you cut any holes plan the locations of the attic vents.

The warm air escapes through the attic and to the attic vents allowing the circulation of chilly air from the windows. However if your attic has blocked soffit vents and is not well sealed from the rest of the house attic fans will suck cool conditioned air up out of the house and into the attic. It helps to cool your home temperatures and the attic by approximately 30 degrees. Mark the roof venting locations from the attic where you can see the rafters and avoid placing roofing vents over them.

Bathroom exhaust fans perform an important function by removing excess moisture from your home.