I would like to know whether this makes sense to replace the roof in
my house but don't put any ventilation to the roof.

I really don't know how the roof in my old house is currently being
ventilated. Our house doesn't have any soffit vent. The vents in both
gable ends are sealed off when the upper floor was converted into
living space. Consequently I have these problem from the roof:

- I feel that the upper floor in our house is very hot in summer.

- I have an ice-dam problem in the last winter (the roof is very low
pitch may also have something to do with this specific problem).

- When I examine the surface of the roof, I find that it is wavy in
some areas (something like 3" up and down). I feel that many areas in
the roof are soft or are bouncy. The house inspector told me the same
thing when he examined the house before I bought it.

I want to fix the roof. But when I got quotes from roofers, they
didn't mention anything about improving ventilation.

My questions a

- May be I am asking the wrong type of contractors to work on my
roof? I guess roofers only replace boards and shingles and don't deal
with other things (such as ventilation). What is the correct kind of
contractors that I should look for?

- What will happen if I replace the roof with new boards, new
membrane, and new shingles but not improving ventilation in anyway?
Will lack of any ventilation cause the new roof to quickly become
deteriorated? The roofers guarantee their work for 10 years though;
seem like they may know what they are talking about. I live in
northern New Jersey if this matters.

- Currently, the house has very low pitch, and the house doesn't have
any attic. I have a feeling that if I increase the pitch of the house
to make room for an attic, I may be able to greatly improve the
ventilation of the roof, and I may be able to run ductwork over the
attic for a future central air conditioning system. If I want to
improve the roof in this way, will this add too much load to the
structure of the house? The house used to be a Cape Cod style; and the
upper floor was bumped out to become a living area; I am afraid that
the structure of the house was not expecting a large attic. What kind
of contracters should I be looking for?

Thanks in advance for any info.

Jay Chan

At the minimum they should be volunteering to put in a ridge vent. If they
don't you haven't found anyone decent yet. To put in a ridgevent they saw
off the top of the ridge and nail up a vent. But that would only solve half
the problem. You need a way for fresh air to get in. Ridgevent only lets
out cold air. Whoever installed the new room was probably incompetent since
he did not consider this issue. If he was smart, when the room was finished
he would have put in sofit vents and boards that prevented insulation from
blocking the vents. I would look to a highly recommended general home
improvement licensed contractor to see what he suggests. Or move.



"Jay Chan" wrote in message
om...
I would like to know whether this makes sense to replace the roof in
my house but don't put any ventilation to the roof.

I really don't know how the roof in my old house is currently being
ventilated. Our house doesn't have any soffit vent. The vents in both
gable ends are sealed off when the upper floor was converted into
living space. Consequently I have these problem from the roof:

- I feel that the upper floor in our house is very hot in summer.

- I have an ice-dam problem in the last winter (the roof is very low
pitch may also have something to do with this specific problem).

- When I examine the surface of the roof, I find that it is wavy in
some areas (something like 3" up and down). I feel that many areas in
the roof are soft or are bouncy. The house inspector told me the same
thing when he examined the house before I bought it.

I want to fix the roof. But when I got quotes from roofers, they
didn't mention anything about improving ventilation.

My questions a

- May be I am asking the wrong type of contractors to work on my
roof? I guess roofers only replace boards and shingles and don't deal
with other things (such as ventilation). What is the correct kind of
contractors that I should look for?

- What will happen if I replace the roof with new boards, new
membrane, and new shingles but not improving ventilation in anyway?
Will lack of any ventilation cause the new roof to quickly become
deteriorated? The roofers guarantee their work for 10 years though;
seem like they may know what they are talking about. I live in
northern New Jersey if this matters.

- Currently, the house has very low pitch, and the house doesn't have
any attic. I have a feeling that if I increase the pitch of the house
to make room for an attic, I may be able to greatly improve the
ventilation of the roof, and I may be able to run ductwork over the
attic for a future central air conditioning system. If I want to
improve the roof in this way, will this add too much load to the
structure of the house? The house used to be a Cape Cod style; and the
upper floor was bumped out to become a living area; I am afraid that
the structure of the house was not expecting a large attic. What kind
of contracters should I be looking for?

Thanks in advance for any info.

Jay Chan

What kind of contracters should I be looking for?

Maybe you should consider a realtor to help you find place with fewer problems.
You could be looking at $15K or more to modernize the structure. If there are
compelling reasons to stay there, talk to an architect, or similar
professional. They may also have recommendations for good contractors as well.
HTH

Joe

You need venting , im suprised you dont have mold in the attic. try
www.savenrg.com/venting.htm

(Jay Chan) wrote in message . com...
I would like to know whether this makes sense to replace the roof in
my house but don't put any ventilation to the roof.

I really don't know how the roof in my old house is currently being
ventilated. Our house doesn't have any soffit vent. The vents in both
gable ends are sealed off when the upper floor was converted into
living space. Consequently I have these problem from the roof:

- I feel that the upper floor in our house is very hot in summer.

- I have an ice-dam problem in the last winter (the roof is very low
pitch may also have something to do with this specific problem).

- When I examine the surface of the roof, I find that it is wavy in
some areas (something like 3" up and down). I feel that many areas in
the roof are soft or are bouncy. The house inspector told me the same
thing when he examined the house before I bought it.

I want to fix the roof. But when I got quotes from roofers, they
didn't mention anything about improving ventilation.

My questions a

- May be I am asking the wrong type of contractors to work on my
roof? I guess roofers only replace boards and shingles and don't deal
with other things (such as ventilation). What is the correct kind of
contractors that I should look for?

- What will happen if I replace the roof with new boards, new
membrane, and new shingles but not improving ventilation in anyway?
Will lack of any ventilation cause the new roof to quickly become
deteriorated? The roofers guarantee their work for 10 years though;
seem like they may know what they are talking about. I live in
northern New Jersey if this matters.

- Currently, the house has very low pitch, and the house doesn't have
any attic. I have a feeling that if I increase the pitch of the house
to make room for an attic, I may be able to greatly improve the
ventilation of the roof, and I may be able to run ductwork over the
attic for a future central air conditioning system. If I want to
improve the roof in this way, will this add too much load to the
structure of the house? The house used to be a Cape Cod style; and the
upper floor was bumped out to become a living area; I am afraid that
the structure of the house was not expecting a large attic. What kind
of contracters should I be looking for?

Thanks in advance for any info.

Jay Chan

Jay,
I suggest you look at Building Science Corporation web site for a
discussion of ventilation based on research. The style of presentation
is IMHO not reassuring, but I've seen work by some of the authors and
seen discussions by other building science folk that parallel much of
what is said on that site.

In the meantime, if I understand what you have, you may have to do
more than replace the roof covering. Research for more efficient
insulation and for some of the ways an unvented roof assembly is built
are important. It may be that the roofers you have spoken to recognize
that the roof assembly cannot be vented. I have notes from a Harvard
Graduate School of Design course that discuss the history of
ventilation requirements and the vague basis on which code
requirements for venting are based. If you are interested, let me
know.

Tom Baker

What you need is soffit vent, ridge vent and Baffels in the bays to keep the
insulation from pressing agenst the roof shething allowing air to flow from
soffit vent to ridge vent.
This will help to cool the roof down and help alot with the ice daming.
Regards
Gary
WWW.LIsheds.com
Storage Sheds for the NY tri state area

Thanks for all the responses that I got here.

Seem like I must find a way to vent the roof before I put too much
money on replacing the cover of the roof. Otherwise, I may be back to
square-one very soon.

Looking for a new house is also a good idea. But we prefer to stay in
this area because the property tax is low (relative to other
surrounding areas). Unfortunately, the houses around here are quite
highly priced. This means we will have to find a way to pay for a new
house while still paying for the mortgage of the current house. The
financial arrangement is kind of tough to do.

I will do the following:

- Go to web sites suggested by newsgroup members to see the issues
related to low pitch roof or unventilated roof to see how pressing the
problem is, and to see if the low pitch roof can be ventilated or not.
If this is not a pressing issue (like in the case when the roof still
has 10 more years left or something like that).

- If this is truely a pressing issue, I will ask some general
remodeling contractors to get quote on adding ventilation in
additional to replacing the roof.

Thanks for the info and advices.

Jay Chan

1-800-ROOFING for Owens-Corning to discuss issues, Such as that most any
roofing materials supplier will not give a warantee unless you have a
minimum of one square foot of vent opening per 300 square feet of interior
roof volume. And that's the minimum, twice that is recommended.

Jay Chan wrote in message
om...
Thanks for all the responses that I got here.

Seem like I must find a way to vent the roof before I put too much
money on replacing the cover of the roof. Otherwise, I may be back to
square-one very soon.

Looking for a new house is also a good idea. But we prefer to stay in
this area because the property tax is low (relative to other
surrounding areas). Unfortunately, the houses around here are quite
highly priced. This means we will have to find a way to pay for a new
house while still paying for the mortgage of the current house. The
financial arrangement is kind of tough to do.

I will do the following:

- Go to web sites suggested by newsgroup members to see the issues
related to low pitch roof or unventilated roof to see how pressing the
problem is, and to see if the low pitch roof can be ventilated or not.
If this is not a pressing issue (like in the case when the roof still
has 10 more years left or something like that).

- If this is truely a pressing issue, I will ask some general
remodeling contractors to get quote on adding ventilation in
additional to replacing the roof.

Thanks for the info and advices.

Jay Chan

You really dont get it do you , it IS a pressing issue that needs to be
addressed. You cant sell it like that. And soon you WILL have rot.

You really dont get it do you , it IS a pressing issue that needs to be
addressed. You cant sell it like that. And soon you WILL have rot.

After reading the info about venting attic, I gradually become
convinced that I need to greatly improve the ventilation of my roof
(there is no ventilation currently). In other words, what the roofers
proposed will not work because they only want to replace the roof
cover, but not improving the ventilation. They probably were misled by
the vent holes in the gable ends (they look OK outside; but actually
they were sealed in inside; now they become a part of the wall).
Therefore, they may not realize that the roof is not being vented in
anyway.

I will call them back to make clear to them that the roof is not
currently being vented, and see if they may come up with a different
proposal.

I will also ask other general remodeling contracter to see if
rebuilding the roof (by increasing the pitch to create a real attic)
is feasible and for how much.

Thanks.

Jay Chan

"Jay Chan" wrote in message
om...
You really dont get it do you , it IS a pressing issue that needs to be
addressed. You cant sell it like that. And soon you WILL have rot.

After reading the info about venting attic, I gradually become
convinced that I need to greatly improve the ventilation of my roof
(there is no ventilation currently). In other words, what the roofers
proposed will not work because they only want to replace the roof
cover, but not improving the ventilation. They probably were misled by
the vent holes in the gable ends (they look OK outside; but actually
they were sealed in inside; now they become a part of the wall).
Therefore, they may not realize that the roof is not being vented in
anyway.

I will call them back to make clear to them that the roof is not
currently being vented, and see if they may come up with a different
proposal.

I will also ask other general remodeling contracter to see if
rebuilding the roof (by increasing the pitch to create a real attic)
is feasible and for how much.

Thanks.

Jay Chan

Have you looked into a ridge vent. I saw some at the home store. It goes in
right at the peak. Of course your going to have to add some supply some
where. If you have gabled ends why not add in some vents there. They are
pretty simple and readily available.

Just my thoughts to help

Far as I'm concerned, ridge vent is the best way to go. Far better than the
alternatives. And Owens-Corning has an edge vent that installs at the edge
of the roof to serve instead of soffit venting. I had one 30 years ago, had
to show the contractor how to do it. Certain-teed has a similar product.

By now, if a contractor doesn't plan to fix inadequate ventilation, get the
phone book out again. Very simple, if there's inadequate venting, the
manufacturer warrantee is void, and you've got nothing.

By the way, before the roofing tearoff, cut the grass as close as you can.
Helps greatly when using the nail broom (long magnet on wheels for
collecting nails)

SQLit wrote in message
news:EF%9c.61576$Bg.4662@fed1read03...

"Jay Chan" wrote in message
om...
You really dont get it do you , it IS a pressing issue that needs to
be
addressed. You cant sell it like that. And soon you WILL have rot.

After reading the info about venting attic, I gradually become
convinced that I need to greatly improve the ventilation of my roof
(there is no ventilation currently). In other words, what the roofers
proposed will not work because they only want to replace the roof
cover, but not improving the ventilation. They probably were misled by
the vent holes in the gable ends (they look OK outside; but actually
they were sealed in inside; now they become a part of the wall).
Therefore, they may not realize that the roof is not being vented in
anyway.

I will call them back to make clear to them that the roof is not
currently being vented, and see if they may come up with a different
proposal.

I will also ask other general remodeling contracter to see if
rebuilding the roof (by increasing the pitch to create a real attic)
is feasible and for how much.

Thanks.

Jay Chan

Have you looked into a ridge vent. I saw some at the home store. It goes
in
right at the peak. Of course your going to have to add some supply some
where. If you have gabled ends why not add in some vents there. They are
pretty simple and readily available.

Just my thoughts to help

Far as I'm concerned, ridge vent is the best way to go. Far better than the
alternatives. And Owens-Corning has an edge vent that installs at the edge
of the roof to serve instead of soffit venting. I had one 30 years ago, had
to show the contractor how to do it. Certain-teed has a similar product.

I will let the roofing contractor to come up with a way to add
ventilation to my roof, and I will see if their proposal makes sense.
They may come up with a proposal to use ridge vent as you have
suggested. Currently, I am kind of pessimistic about this because the
space between the ceiling in the top floor and the roof surface
doesn't seem to have enough room for both ventilation and insulation.
I will see.

By now, if a contractor doesn't plan to fix inadequate ventilation, get the
phone book out again. Very simple, if there's inadequate venting, the
manufacturer warrantee is void, and you've got nothing.

Thanks for the warning.

By the way, before the roofing tearoff, cut the grass as close as you can.
Helps greatly when using the nail broom (long magnet on wheels for
collecting nails)

Thanks. The area surrounding the house are flower bed. I will need to
remove the mulch from the flower bed before the roofing people come.

Jay Chan