Ridge vents run the length of your roof at its peak. These vents allow air to circulate under the roof to prevent the buildup of moisture. A ridge vent can blend in with your roof so that it is not noticeable. The low profile design can actually fit under shingles. It usually cannot be seen from the ground, especially on the roof of a two-story or three-story home.
Why It’s Important
Ridge vents are not only important to full fill warranty requirements from Owens Corning, that Sousa Roofing & Siding is a Preferred Contractor to install Owens Corning roofing systems, it also plays a vital role as the ventilation system for the roof.
Owens Corning lays out what happens when you have and don’t have proper ventilation:
Proper ventilation in your attic helps address excess heat and moisture that can otherwise wreak havoc on your home. Heat and moisture buildup in an attic cause predictable but different problems in hot and cold climates; areas with hot summers and cold winters can suffer the effects of both.
When it’s hot outside, the sun beating down on the roof can increase the temperature in the attic. Exposure to this excessive heat can warp the roof sheathing and distort and prematurely age the shingles. If the attic floor isn’t evenly and adequately insulated, that heat can radiate down into the finished living areas and make it more difficult and costly to keep the living space comfortable.
In locales where the temperature drops below freezing during the winter, warm air escaping into the attic from the heated living space below rises to the underside of the roof deck. As the roof deck warms, the bottom layer of accumulated snow on the rooftop begins to melt, causing water to trickle down the roof. Once the runoff reaches the cold outer edge, it refreezes into ice. When this happens repeatedly, an ice dam forms along the eaves, blocking the escape of further runoff. Once the water has nowhere to go, it can back up under the shingles. A properly installed self-adhered underlayment is a final defense against ice damming. This tear-resistant, waterproofing product seals tight around nails. It helps prevent water overflow from entering exterior walls or the attic where it can saturate the floor insulation, ruin the drywall underneath or get into the interior walls.
Humidity, generated from your living area or from outside, that enters a cool attic condenses into a liquid when it meets colder surfaces. Over time, that moisture can cause deterioration of the roof system and interior structural elements or ruin the attic insulation. In a warm attic, the moisture can allow mold and mildew to flourish and put added strain on the home’s cooling equipment.