Ridge Roof Vent Questions

[Robert11]

Hello:

Will be having a roofing job, and the roofer suggested a "ridge roof vent" be added by him when he does the new shingle installation.

Did a Google search on these things, but a bit confused how they work.

a. what keeps the rain out if the rain is driven horizontally by a strong wind, which sometimes does happen ? Wouldn't any "horiz" or near horiz. rain get right into the attic ?

b. Didn't see any mention of screens for these things. What keeps the bugs and flies out ?

c. BTW: do they come in different materials ? If so, what would I want ?

All in all, a good idea in your opinions ?

(what's a typical or reasonable cost for a typical 40' or so length roof line for the item and installation ?)

Thanks, Bob

[Joseph Meehan]

I don't know how, but the seem to stay dry even in strong driving rains.

They all have a bug filter they construction. It is more like open foam. It works.

As far as I know, yes, but as far as I have been able to determine they all seem to work well.

In my opinion, yes. I had it added to my roof when they re-roofed after hail damage. No extra charge. Good deal and they did a good job. Well actually there was a sort of extra charge. I told them they did not need to replace the down spouts and gutters that were dented as the damage was minor so they offered upgraded materials and venting.

Nothing for mine :-)

[mm]

Maybe I don't get horizontal rain, but I also don't get any water in the attic. The cross section is rather complicated, with a little awning, I think.

Don't know, but there aren't any.

Mine is black plastic and I think came in a roll. Others I think are black plastic and come straight.

Yes. There have been discussions about this, but I have a full lenghth ridge vent and 2 full length soffitt vents and a thermostatically controlled roof fan and I'm very happy.

House was built with one. I was given a flat price for redoing everything (plus a surcharge for any piece of plywood that needed replacing. Oonly 1 did.)

[HeyBub]

It's all magic. Don't strain on the issue. Just get it.

Somewhat connected is the maxim: You can't have too much soffit venting.

[tom]

They usally have a mesh or labrynth(sp) -like trap to keep out driven rain. The bugs are kept out the same way. Materials can be of steel or aluminum, or spun polyester around a stiff plastic weave, which I prefer visually, as it's ridge-capped over. Just don't step on it). Good idea, IMO, as you can't have too much ventilation. I've charged a few bucks a foot in the past for certain installations. Tom

[hallerb]

The only trouble I had were sparrows working hard to break into attic.

Finally had to removed, added hardware cloth, wide mesh screen, and replaced ridge vent.

never any water, no bugs, much cooler attic

[Deke]

I know I saved at least 10% on my electric bill when I installed ridge vents with my new roof. That's huge over the life of the home.

[cavedweller]

Make sure that there's some means of keeping out driven snow.

[cavedweller]

errr...on the ridge?

Recently had a friend report a ceiling leak cause by a recently installed ridge vent that allowed driven snow to collect on the attic floor and drip through the ceiling. Seems he's trying to find some open cell foam or the like to install to prevent a repeat.

[JimR]

According to the contractor doing my renovation, ridge vents are NOT recommended in Florida because they are susceptible to hurricane damage. During 2004-5 hurricanes in this area many ridge vents ripped off like zippers, which then exposed the roof to more damage. (The contractor doing my work is extremely cautious about any openings in the roof, including skylights and solotubes, feeling that -- especially during heavy storms -- they have the potential to become the source of problems, no matter how well installed.)

[HeyBub]

Insurance will pay for the damage. YOU pay for the increased electric bills and premature roof-replacement due to heat.

Get a hurricane-friendly ridge-vent and make sure it is installed with hurricanes in mind.

[Norminn]

Well, one alternative is to have no vents. The roof will be hotter and the roofing will degrade more quickly. Hurricane force winds aren't that choosy - they will take your shingles, tiles, etc. Our closest call was 70 mph wind, my maximum tolerable :o) Our 6x15' skylight took flight, but that was because one end had leaked for years and years and the wood it had been attached to rotted away. We had a pretty shabby reroof done in '97, before I lived here, with lots and lots of shingles falling off due to improper nailing. Two major reworks, and a few other callbacks resulted in getting glue stuck under all of the flaps of the shingles - the silver lining to our dark cloud was that the extra adhesive probably is what kept us from losing a lot more in the hurricane blow-by. Only lost 3, when most of the surrounding area lost large amounts, especially on older roofs.

We have a weird roof on our condo, with square vents on top of mansards. I kept bugging people when it appeared that we were losing more shingles on the sunny side of the roof. One owner finally took a look at the vent and found it stuffed with fiberglass, apparently to keep rats out. That's another story.

If a ridge vent flies off, it was probably fastened with staples.

[Deke]

Yes, and more importantly, he should get a new contractor.

[Art]

Get one that shingles are nailed over. They look the best.