Power attic ventilation

So I'm getting on a ventilation kick! Last week we talked about ridge vents. This week I want to talk about power attic ventilation. Ventilation is just so important in protecting your roof, I want you to know about some of the different options you have!
The basic purpose of power attic ventilation is to remove heat from your attic so that cooling loads are reduced. The vents exhaust the hot attic air and draw in the cooler ambient air. This helps your HVAC systems to not have to work quite as hard to cool your home, in turn, saving you money. A common thing to do with this ventilation system is to have a thermostat in your attic that signals the attic fan to come on once a certain temperature is reached, and then to turn off automatically once it cools to the desired temperature.
Now, as I want to present you with different options to be able to ventilate your home properly, they are not all equal in my book. I still think other forms of ventilation are superior to this, but if it comes down to having no ventilation or having a power attic vent, of course I would choose the power attic vent, hands down. Don't get me wrong, it's not a BAD system, it's just not the most energy efficient. Personally, I don't think using electricity to ventilate the attic and reduce cooling loads is very often justified. There are other techniques that will give you better results, sealing off the room and maximizing the insulation, adequate ventilation openings, solar powered attic fans, etc.
A lot of this comes down to what system is best for YOUR house. Also, did your builder do an adequate job of picking the right forms of ventilation to suit your house. Make sure this is a high priority whenever you're building a house.
So, your homework for the week is to check your house and make sure you have proper ventilation. Check your roof, make sure there are no "ripples". If you don't know how to do this, give me a call! If you're not local, give me a shout anyways and I can either help you through it or refer you to someone in your area who can!

www.sawyerroofing.com