Comments on: Adding Soffit Vents

by: Ray

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 00:16:02 +0000

fyi regarding direction of vents

by: Glen

Tue, 05 Aug 2008 18:19:43 +0000

When installing soffit vents, do you install them with the vents facing the house or with the vents facing away from the house?

by: teri

Sun, 03 Aug 2008 19:20:40 +0000

where can i purchase that vent cover? i have 3 2″ holes inline every 2 feet all around the house - most of the screens are missing & need to cover them. thank you.

by: Ben Erickson

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 14:28:14 +0000

Gary,
Since AC units expel quite a bit of heat, putting a soffit vent directly above one wouldn’t be the best place for it. Rather than taking up one of your existing soffit vents with a bath vent, perhaps you could cut a separate hole in the soffit for it, or run it out the gable if it’s not too far away.

by: Gary Costanza

Sun, 13 Jul 2008 15:52:20 +0000

Would it be a problem to install soffit vents near or over an A/C? Also, when I install my bath vent out through the soffits, will that interfere with the attic soffit vents? Should I vent thebath out the roof? I have a roof with a ridge vent and gable vents, but no soffit vents. I can install some easily on one side, but the other side has the problems outlined above. This side also has half the soffit length because of an addition with a torch-down roof. Maybe I can get some venting through the torch-down roof soffit by cutting a hole in the roof to allow the air to flow.

Thanks for your help

by: Bill Ways

Mon, 09 Jun 2008 17:40:06 +0000

Danny:

I have a run the numbers on my vents and I am a little short on the total vent opening space, I think. I have about 3,400′ of floor space in the attic and 26 soffit vents that are about 8″ X 16″ and maybe 60% open (the efficiency is eaten up by loovers and screens. Then on the roof I have six wind turbins that are about 12″ (when i measure the inside diameter they seem like they don’t quite measure 12″ but are more than 10″. If I did the numbers right I have enough soffit vent but need a little more venting higher up. I live in Texas and when the outside temp is 100F the attic temp is arond 135F. I had read once that if the attic were properly ventilated the attic temp should be around 105 if the outside temp is 95. What are your comments on this? Do I need more vent space and if so, where? Is it really reasonable to expect to get the attic temp down to 105 with an outside temp of 95 with natural ventilation?

by: Ben Erickson

Thu, 22 May 2008 17:14:20 +0000

Hi Adam,
I see no problem with locating a soffit vent above a window or door. Many houses have continuous soffit vents which go all the way across the house. The only reason I could think of not to put a vent over a window would be in the unlikely instance that a downdraft caused hot air to come out of the vent and in an open window. However, since hot air rises, under most circumstances the soffit vent would be drawing cool air in rather than letting hot air out.

by: Adam

Tue, 20 May 2008 14:17:09 +0000

I remember hearing or reading somewhere that soffit vents should not be installed directly above windows (and doors also?), though the picture here shows one squarely above a window I’m adding soffit vents to my home, and the ones I’ve got are currently evenly placed, except for above windows. Any truth behind this?

Thanks!

by: Ben Erickson

Mon, 19 May 2008 16:02:08 +0000

Paul,
While you can have too little venting in your attic, you can’t really have too much. Keep in mind that it’s best if half the venting is in the soffit at the bottom of the roof and the other half at the top in gable or ridge vents to allow outside air to flow through the attic. Depending on local building codes, the venting may be reduced to 1 sq. ft. of vents for every 300 sq. ft. of attic area if the house has an adequate vapor barrier and the venting is balanced between the top and bottom of the attic.

by: Paul

Mon, 19 May 2008 14:57:35 +0000

Ben,
I used your formula to do my house (38×60), and had planned on using soffit vents with three 2″ round holes on them-until I realized that I would need a crazy amount of holes. So here’s my question-if i modify the hole to make it bigger, is there any such thing as too much ventilation when it comes to attics?