Vent Window for Bonus Room

[Paul]

I have an unfinished room above my garage. It has a roof ridge vent, but little or no air intake. It also has 3 screened double hung windows. I would like to leave the window in the back of the room opened to provide air intake, but it will also let the rain in.

Short of putting up an old fashion awning, has anyone come up with a way to prevent rain entry but still allow a good portion of the window to remain open? Thanks for any ideas.

[William]

How about a Jalousie window? It's not something I'd put on the front of a house, but in your case, it might be just what you want. If you've never seen one (never been in Florida, for example :-), here's one URL:

As you can see, the glass slats can be set to keep rain out (unless you get a really strong airflow going into the window) while blocking very little airflow (one reason they were so popular in pre-A/C Fla.) or light. The downside is that they leak a lot of air even when closed, so they aren't the best in a cold climate. (You can, of course, seal them with a plastic cover or storm window.)

I remember sitting on my aunt's porch at her house (a Sears kit house, BTW) in Lakeland Florida during rainstorms and the breeze was lovely with nary a drop getting inside. There were probably six or eight three-foot wide Jalousie windows there. -Wm