Powered Attic Ventilation

When I first started in the trade, I used to advise customers with hot attics to install powered attic ventilators (PAVs) to “suck” that hot air out of the attic. It just made sense to me at the time; if the attic is hot, get the hot out!

When I started learning more about design, someone enlightened me that when you blow air into a space, the same amount has to go out, and when you suck air out of a space (like an attic), it has to come from somewhere. Ideally, the air would come from soffit or gable vents, but in most houses, there are also many gaps from the attic into the home, and a lot of that air will come from the inside and waste energy.

Nowadays, I'm a “fan” (pun intended) of either encapsulating and conditioning the attic or using large, well-vented soffits (will often require baffles to keep the insulation out) and ridge vents.

My friend Neil Comparetto just made a video on this topic that illustrates it nicely:

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Related Tech Tips

Historic Homes: Handle with Care
This article was written by Sam Myers with Retrotec. Thanks, Sam! If you’ve ever lived in a historic home, you’ve likely noticed that the level of comfort can change throughout different parts of the house. It can also typically change throughout different times of the year, depending on your climate. That is primarily due to […]
Read more
Setting Sights on Safety: Eye/Face Risks and PPE
DISCLAIMER: HVAC School is NOT an official OSHA safety training resource! Although we provide safety tips in good faith, our website is not a substitute for safety training from an authorized OSHA training source. Although we primarily work with our hands, our eyes are one of our most valuable assets in the industry. After all, […]
Read more
Introverts Can Sell
When you think of a salesman, what comes to mind? Do you imagine a quiet person who helps you solve your problems by listening and evaluating you as a customer? Probably not.  When most people hear the word ‘salesman,' they imagine a flashy personality who will talk to you for hours to try to get […]
Read more
loading

To continue you need to agree to our terms.

The HVAC School site, podcast and daily tech tips
Made possible by Generous support from