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PURPOSE OF SOFFIT VENTS
What is a soffit vent?
To put simply, a soffit vent is a vent that is installed under the eaves of your roof, known as the soffit, to help your roof or attic keep cool by drawing in fresh outside air into your attic. These are often called under-eave soffit vents. You can also get a soffit dryer vent that you would allow for the exhaust of your dryer to escape your home through the under eaves instead of relying on the normal wall venting.
The word “soffit” is derived from the French language, and literally means “something fixed underneath.” It’s most commonly used around a building’s main roof, but soffit can also be used under porches, under arches or columns, under a flight of stairs… pretty much anything that has a visible ceiling. It is commonly made in aluminum and vinyl, as well as fiber cement, wood, and steel.
Soffit serves both an aesthetic and functional purpose for a roofing system. It’s the skin that covers your eaves — without it, you would see your rafter beams fully exposed. Cover it up with soffit, in the style and color that you like, and you add some instant and easy character to your building.
Functionally speaking, soffit protects your rafters from the weather elements. If your rafters are exposed in any areas, you’ll likely have mold buildup and rotting beams to replace. Mold in a home is never healthy.
Also, soffit helps your building breathe. With vented soffit, air can flow through the vents to provide regular air circulation to your attic. Air flow is tremendously important for your entire home. If you have lanced style vents, you can achieve proper air flow while limiting the moisture that can enter through the vents.
What is the purpose of a soffit vent and do you need them?
The soffit vent allows for cooler, fresh outside air to be pulled into your roof or attic. This allows for the hot and humid air that has built up inside your attic to escape out of your other vents. These vents work great along with the roof ridge vent.
The reason why you would want to have these vents installed if you have not already is that a roof without any ventilation has a great problem with overheating and a humidity build up. Humidity not only threatening to damage your roof or anything that is stored in your attic, if your roof is too hot it can actually cause a huge problem to your energy costs. A well-ventilated roof and attic will keep your home cooler and thus any air conditioning you have in your house will have to work a lot less in order to keep your house cool, which will cost less in electricity and save you money.
Should your home be lacking the proper attic ventilation, it is really in your best interests to install these vents into your home. It is important when pairing this vent type up with another system, such as a ridge vent. It is important to get that perfect balance of 50% soffit vent intake to 50% ridge vent exhaust.
Types of soffit vents
There is not a lot of different types of soffit vents like you can get for other vent types, but there are some that will work well for you depending on the size of your roof and what other ventilation systems you already have in place.
Individual soffit vents – These vents are extremely common, they are easy for a one person to fit themselves so this is not a surprise at all. They may not be as effective as a continuous vent but none the less they work well. These vents are cut specifically to fit between the joists of your under eave or soffit.
Continuous soffit vents – These are a form of under-eave vents that run along the entire eave or soffit of a roof for maximum air intake, these work very well with very large exhaust vents such as gable vents or ridge vents.
Perforated soffit vents – Perforated vents work well in order to prevent rodents and the like from being able to use this as easy access in to your roof. It is generally a great idea to get some form of cover for your vents to help combat this risk. Usually, perforated vents are made for houses with vinyl siding.
Do you need soffit vents if you have a ridge vent?
The two vents work well when paired if done correctly by a roofing professional, and you will have that 50/50 balance that just about everyone talks about when speaking about roof ventilation.
Soffit vents allow for the outside dryer air to be sucked up into your roof forcing the hot and humid air through the top of your ridge vent creating a constant flow through your roof keeping it cooler and potentially even cutting down on your electricity costs.
It is highly advised that if you have or are planning on installing ridge vents, you should pair this off with soffit vents. This will keep your roof cool, reduce humidity and prevent damage to your roof as well as anything stored in your attic.
Pros and Cons of using soffit vents
Pro: If you are planning on installing individual soffit vents in your roof and you have adequate space under the eaves or soffits, these vents are quite easy to install and would be a job for one person. This does, however, change if you are wanting to install continuous soffit vents as they take a lot more work and it is recommended that you use a roofing professional to do the install.
Pro: If you are living in a heavy snow area or an area that gets snow quite often then these vents are great for your home as they are near impossible to become blocked with good maintenance.
Pro: They have a relatively low maintenance cost, so in the long run paying a bit extra to get the job done by a train professional is not too much of a downfall cost wise as you will be saving money.
Con: Soffit vents are designed for air intake, so if they are not paired off correctly with another exhaust vent they will not work efficiently in cooling your roof. This will risk damage to your roof or home.
Con: It is possible for moist air to collect under your soffits, this can severely hinder the very function these vents are designed for. This won’t only risk damaging your roof but also risk damaging your siding and under eaves.
Con: Should you have soffit intake vents near your exhaust vents that may be working for your bathroom for example, there is a huge risk of this moist air being sucked into your intake vents, through your roof and this moisture can wreak havoc in your roof and cause some serious damage to your house.
CALL OR EMAIL US TODAY FOR YOUR FREE ESTIMATE – 202-276-5004 FAMILY.ROOFING@YAHOO.COM
To put simply, a soffit vent is a vent that is installed under the eaves of your roof, known as the soffit, to help your roof or attic keep cool by drawing in fresh outside air into your attic. These are often called under-eave soffit vents. You can also get a soffit dryer vent that you would allow for the exhaust of your dryer to escape your home through the under eaves instead of relying on the normal wall venting.
The soffit vent allows for cooler, fresh outside air to be pulled into your roof or attic. This allows for the hot and humid air that has built up inside your attic to escape out of your other vents. These vents work great along with the roof ridge vent.
Individual soffit vents – These vents are extremely common, they are easy for a one person to fit themselves so this is not a surprise at all. They may not be as effective as a continuous vent but none the less they work well. These vents are cut specifically to fit between the joists of your under eave or soffit.
Pro: If you are planning on installing individual soffit vents in your roof and you have adequate space under the eaves or soffits, these vents are quite easy to install and would be a job for one person. This does, however, change if you are wanting to install continuous soffit vents as they take a lot more work and it is recommended that you use a roofing professional to do the install.