Southside Attic Solution

Heat can be an enemy.  Whether the heat is found in the attic, a barn or even a chicken coop, it can cause problems.  For instance, one of the most ignored spaces in the home is the attic.  Yet, improperly vented attic air costs hundreds- even thousands of dollars.  Did you know that attic air without mechanical venting reaches a range of 130 to 150 degrees Fahrenheit during a summer day? 

Why is this a bad thing to have happen?  One, having a hot attic space increases the cost of cooling a home.  The additional air conditioning cost can be 10 percent or more!  Also, the heat radiates back into the living space, making it less comfortable.  Venting the hot air out of the attic is beneficial in saving air conditioning energy use and in making the home more comfortable.

Another thing not often considered is what this heat does to asphalt shingles.  A hot attic makes for excessively hot shingles.  This is especially so at locations where heat merely seeps out of an attic, shuch as at non-powered gravity vents.  The asphaltic meterial decays, the shingle becomes brittle and cracks.  Instead of getting 20 to 30 years out of a roof, the useful life can easily be reduced to 10 to 15 years.  Once the shingles start cracking, it is time to replace them!

You may want to determine if your attic space becomes excessively heated.  You can use a wireless temperature sensor and receiver.  Put the sensor in the attic and record the information on the receiver.  Compare the attic temperature with the in-house or even out-of door temperatures.  We have found that monitoring the air temperature provides valuable information, before and after installing an attic fan.  We can provide this device if desired.

How can one remove the heat from an attic?  The answer is to power ventilate the attic space.  There are two methods to do this.  One method is to install an electric motor driven power vent.  The second method is to install a self-contained solar-powered attic fan.  Solar powered attic fans have significant advantages.  These include:

• An electrician is not needed to install the fan
• No wiring or switches to be installed in the attic
• Consumes no electrical power from the power company
• Helps prevent moisture damage to the roof in cold weather

It is important to install the proper size fan or fans.  For success, a good path of air flow is needed.  Generally speaking, multiply the size of your attic in square feet by 0.7.  The result is the number of scfm needed to remove excess heat from the attic.

What is the best roof to install the fan?  The best roof is often a south-facing one in open sunshine.  Some homes are more affected by evening sun, and for these, a fan on the west roof may be best.   Installation on a combination of east, south and/or west roofs can also be beneficial. A lot depends on how the sunlight shines on your house and how your house is shaded.  To get more hours of sunshine to power one fan, a second solar panel could be purchased, wired to the unit and faced in a different direction from the fan-mounted solar panel.  See the picture of the gable style unit on the "Services" page.  On a north-south roof line, this design will run the fan all day!

The fans can be used for more than just attics.  They can also be used to remove heat from other spaces, such as barns, greenhouses, chicken coops, or other structures.  They may be particularly advantageous if the structure is not provided grid electrical power.

What We Do

We sell products for the purpose of providing better attic air conditions, to provide a more comfortable home environment by improving the attic space and to also enable the homeowner to save money by having attic and roofing materials last longer.  We offer products that will benefit other structure environments, such as found at a business or a farm.  Part of our mission is to educate individuals so that they can benefit from these products.

What's New?

 The gable fan with two solar panels attached is a good concept to obtain all-day ventilation of the attic or other space.  One solar panel could face toward the east and the second panel could face toward the west.  That way, all-day operation of the fan can be achieved as at least one solar panel is receiving sunlight throughout the day.