Do you ever hear a local roofing contractor talk about ventilation?
What are all those pipes sticking through your roof?
You need to know the answers to ensure your roof is healthy and will perform well for decades to come.
In roofing, we often talk about asphalt shingles and tile, but ventilation is important. Find out why.
Let the air flow
You don’t want your home to be airtight. Flowing air from indoors to outdoors prevents harmful pollutants from building inside your house.
If you live along the 210 freeway near the canyons and foothills in places like Altadena or Azusa then you often have a breeze. During summer mornings, you open up the windows to let the cooler air in and give the stale air in your house an easy escape route.
That’s a type of natural ventilation described described here via Energy.gov:
Natural—windows, doors and fissures in walls lets an exchange of air occur.
Spot—exhaust fans in bathrooms and range hoods pull out.
Whole-house ventilation systems.
How does this impact your roof and home?
A home that’s properly ventilated—and insulted–is more energy efficient than a home that’s not ventilated well. Let’s start in the attic.
Air flow in an attic is a challenge. Heat transfers to cooler places. Heat build-up on a roof seeps into the attic during the hottest months.
During cooler winter temperatures, heat in the house will escape up through the attic. Proper ventilation helps reduce moisture build-up during the rainy months.
Ridge caps let hot air to drift up and out through the peak of the roof where it’s applicable, allowing natural ventilation.
Thomas Garvey uses principles of building science in his roofing trade. Homeowners who choose new roof installations can have an effective underlayment that reflects the sun’s rays back into the atmosphere and reduces heat transfer into the home.
He’ll also supply blown-in insulation to cover the joists in the attic and other places where heat is likely to seep through.
On the roof, all those metal protrusions need to be properly sealed so they don’t leak. They help air and fumes within a home to leave.
During a new roof installation, Thomas and his crew noticed there weren’t any vents. They told the homeowners and checked inside the home. During a previous remodel, the vents had been covered and the family could have fallen ill.
Don’t take ventilation for granted.
Roofing as a craft
Roofing is a craft that Thomas Garvey has studied during his thirty years in business. He began roofing as a teenager and has established himself as a roofing contractor serving all the cities of the San Gabriel Valley—from Pasadena to City of Industry.
Garvey Roofing has four licenses including fireproofing and general contracting. Read more here.
With Garvey Roofing, estimates are free and customers benefit from a claim that’s unique in the roofing industry around Los Angeles County: Thomas Garvey guarantees all labor and materials.
Contact Garvey Roofing for an estimate on new roof installs and roof repairs.
