Another Ridge Vent, Gable vent and soffit question (??)

davco

I am re-siding my house which already has a ridge vent, and aluminum(mixed solid and perforated) soffit with plywood soffit underneath. The plywood soffit underneath has some holes cut in it to breathe, but it is certainly not like the wood soffits are wide open behind the aluminum soffit. My guess is that there is a 2-3 inch hole every 16" inches in the plywood.

Also we added a 24 foot adddition (perpendicular) to the back of the house which eliminated 24 feet of 60 feet of soffit.

The original house also has a gable on the front which is perpendicular to the house, effectively eliminating 22 feet of 60 feet of soffit there too.

So taking that all into account, while re-siding, should I eliminate/cover over the gable end vents, which I have read in some postings are counter-productive to soffit to ridge air flow...or should I leave them in place because the soffit is not maximized?

Any professional, experienced recommendations are greatly appreciated.

Ed the Roofer

That is a valid question and concern about short-circuiting the ventilation system.

But, your larger problem remains.

You need to increase your intake ventilation.

Try looking up a fascia vent product. I don't have my literature available to me right now, but either others will know of brand names or you can Google for product results.

Then, when you have corrected the intake problem, you should close off the side wall gable vents.

Ed

Ed the Roofer

Here,

The 1st page of this search resulted in at least 3-4 different products which can achieve the intake solution I mentioned earlier.

Ed

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=fascia+intake+vent