After my attic fan burned out on me last summer, being a ecologically minded person, I decided to try a solar powered attic fan. It seem to work fine but on the really hot days I dont think it really did much(my poor research). Now that summer is ending, I'm thinking about next year. Instead of tearing that new solar fan out, what about putting a fan in the attic just on the inside of my gables. On either side of my house I have vented gables. I would need an electricin to do this, right?
Technically, yes. You can mount the fan but, if you follow the letter of the law, you need an electrician, possibly a permit, inspection, etc. to run the wires and do the hookup. If you are a hand DIY guy and know how to do wiring, just do it, but follow the codes.
Do you have AC? If not, consider a whole house fan that will ventilate your entire house along with the attic.
A long read but has diagrams at the end. You need a way for the air to circulate.
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As for the benefits of solar: "Materials used in some solar systems can create health and safety hazards for workers and anyone else coming into contact with them. In particular, the manufacturing of photovoltaic cells often requires hazardous materials such as arsenic and cadmium. Even relatively inert silicon, a major material used in solar cells, can be hazardous to workers if it is breathed in as dust. Workers involved in manufacturing photovoltaic modules and components must consequently be protected from exposure to these materials. There is an additional-probably very small-danger that hazardous fumes released from photovoltaic modules attached to burning homes or buildings could injure fire fighters. "
If you want an ecologically and cost effective approach, I would highly recommend looking at a ridge vent together with sufficient soffit venting. That uses 0 energy.
Being cynical here, because of the "ecologically minded" was mentioned.
Why power ventulate? Have a ridge vent installed.
Why solar? Solar panels might have been made with heavy metals as ingrediants, or as by products. :)
Insulate. If you have enough R's installed correctly you should have year round pay off, cooler home, and no ice daming. You can buy a lot of insulation for the price of a couple solar roof vent fans.
Now none of this was ment as a how-to answer to your question, but a chance to introduce a few questions, so you can make an educated decision.
Why go power vent when natural venting is better, cheaper, quieter, and better looking? Get rid of all power fans, and any non-powered vents, and install a good full-length, continous ridge vent. Make sure it is installed correctly with proper vent volume under soffits and isn't blocked by insulation. Also you must close all gable vents to maximize the ridge draw volume.
The benefits of ventilation are twofold. The first is to reduce moisture levels all year round, which lengthens the life of roof decking by reducing mildew and rot. The second benefit is to equalize inside and outside temperatures in winter to reduce ice dam formation.
As in anything else, there are a range of qualities and effectiveness. I chose ShingleVent II several years ago because it had both good ventilation and low water infiltration (Dade County standard). Don't go with the cheap, marginally effective Owens Corning venting that comes in a roll at the big boxes. OC now has rigid strips to compete with the very successful ShingleVent but I doubt it is as good, let alone better, because OC continues to sell the cheap roll stuff.
Go look at the premium new c> After my attic fan burned out on me last summer, being a ecologically
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