Early 70s house, gable ended roof made from prefabricated trusses.
I have a problem with condensation in the roof space. I suspect the house was probably OK as built but since then previous owners have fitted double glazing which I assume has reduced the ventilation and resulted in more moisture in the air. Also a double thickness of loft insulation (the second layer looks quite recent) meaning, I assume, the roof space is colder than before and more liable to condensation. The underside of the felt is damp and where nails poke through they have a drop of water on the end. Storage boxes have gone soft.
I started fitting soffit vents but had access problems and decided to look and see if I could fit them from inside. I realised that the insulation was tucked right into the corners effectively blocking any airflow from the eaves. On rolling back some of the insulation I see that the outer leaf of bricks has been built up between each truss so that it comes right up to the roofing felt. An even more effective block to any ventilation.
Is this normal practice? The cutting of the bricks and cement work looks a bit gash between the trusses so I wonder if it was a bodge by the previous owner to keep birds out.
Should I just remove these extra bricks and allow airflow through the soffit vents?
A previous house had an airbrick high up in each gable end. Would that be a good solution?
Andrew