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Yes, we have an exhaust fan here in Seattle. Set for 85 degrees 90% humidity. And we added more insulation. It dropped our home temp from @86-87 during the summer to just above 80. The amount of heat coming down from the above was appalling.
It is a gable fan 1900 cfm. I do have a switch next to the breaker panel to kill it when we have fog, otherwise it will pump fog through the attic for days on end because of the humidity.
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ridge vent is a nice idea, but a strong storm will water your attic or vaulted ceiling. It is not a fun experience.
Some may say it's the installer. Nope.
We had the ridge pulled out and conventional low profile roof vents put in instead.
Not the wind turbo variety as we are well walled by tall trees, until the storms come.
YMMD.
“Art is how we decorate space.
Music is how we decorate time.”
Jean-Michel Basquiat
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Have had ridge vent for 20y - no water in my attic like Fritz reported.
Lots more vent area than the roof vents it replaced.
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a ridge vent is normally "fed" by soffit vents...make sure insulation isn't blocking the soffits.
I've heard of snow getting through a ridge vent in northern climates, but not rain.
we have plenty of thunderstorms with wind blowing the rain every which way & it's never been a problem with our ridge vent...though here in the south the roof pitch is kept low...maybe that's a factor?
powered vents mostly do an excellent job of sucking conditioned air from the living space into the attic.
they should not be used unless you've already had a contractor air seal between the attic and conditioned space below.
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We’ve had a ridge vent in our main house, the well house and the storage shed for twenty five years here in Alabama. Despite several hurricanes, a few tropical storms and a couple of near misses (less than two miles) by tornados, not a drop in the attics. Outlasted the first roof - three tab standard shingles - and well into the life of the current architectural shingles.
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The best time to add solar to your house is when you decide to re-roof. Have you considered that?
