Go Back  DoItYourself.com Community Forums > Interior Improvement Center > Basements, Attics and Crawl Spaces
Reload this Page >

A piece of my ridge board was removed to install the original attic fan.Problem?

A piece of my ridge board was removed to install the original attic fan.Problem?


  #1  
Old 03-20-15, 06:17 AM
J
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: United States
Posts: 18
Upvotes: 0
Received 0 Upvotes on 0 Posts
A piece of my ridge board was removed to install the original attic fan.Problem?

I have a finished attic with vented space above the collar beams, about 4 ft high. My home is 25 years old. In making plans to replace the burned out ventilation fan, I noticed that when installed, a 2" X 2" X 5" piece of the bottom end of the 2" X 10" ridge board was removed to make room for the fan. I don't think this is a structural issue as I don't think the ridge board is weight bearing, but I worry that when I have the home inspected for resale it will come up as a code violation of some sort. Advice?
 
  #2  
Old 03-20-15, 06:41 AM
P
Temporarily Suspended
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: NY
Posts: 10,265
Upvotes: 0
Received 0 Upvotes on 0 Posts
A pic might help. Chances are that it's not a problem.
 
  #3  
Old 03-20-15, 06:46 AM
M
Forum Topic Moderator
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: USA - N.E.Tn
Posts: 45,643
Received 832 Upvotes on 729 Posts
Ya, it's hard to know exactly what you have going on - http://www.doityourself.com/forum/el...your-post.html

btw - welcome to the forums!
 
  #4  
Old 03-20-15, 06:56 AM
J
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: United States
Posts: 18
Upvotes: 0
Received 0 Upvotes on 0 Posts
Thanks. I'll try to upload a picture tonight when I get home.
 
  #5  
Old 03-20-15, 02:02 PM
J
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: United States
Posts: 18
Upvotes: 0
Received 0 Upvotes on 0 Posts
Here is a picture of the fan and the cutout, which is about 6" along the bottom edge of the ridge board.Name:  IMG_0126 (600x800).jpg
Views: 183
Size:  34.2 KB
 
  #6  
Old 03-20-15, 02:15 PM
M
Forum Topic Moderator
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: USA - N.E.Tn
Posts: 45,643
Received 832 Upvotes on 729 Posts
I worry that when I have the home inspected for resale it will come up as a code violation
Do you have plans to sell soon?

I would think that sistering a 2x unto it would alleviate any concern ..... but I'm a painter, not a carpenter - they should be along later
 
  #7  
Old 03-20-15, 02:27 PM
J
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: United States
Posts: 18
Upvotes: 0
Received 0 Upvotes on 0 Posts
We're not planning on selling any time soon, probably not for another 8-10 years. A co-worker (a builder wannabe) suggested that remedy or a hurricane tie (whatever that is).
 
  #8  
Old 03-20-15, 02:34 PM
J
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: United States
Posts: 18
Upvotes: 0
Received 0 Upvotes on 0 Posts
As a painter, maybe you can answer another question. Should we be concerned about the wood rotting? Should we stain and seal it along the cut? If so, how?
 
  #9  
Old 03-20-15, 02:56 PM
chandler's Avatar
Banned. Rule And/Or Policy Violation
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: USA
Posts: 36,607
Upvotes: 0
Received 9 Upvotes on 8 Posts
I wonder why they cut the ridge rather than just lowering the fan The ridge bears no vertical weight and where it is cut will present no real problems. Aesthetically , sistering it would be a good choice. THe wood won't likely have any rot problems since it is a dry location.
 
  #10  
Old 03-20-15, 03:34 PM
J
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: United States
Posts: 18
Upvotes: 0
Received 0 Upvotes on 0 Posts
I'm guessing they wanted to raise the fan above the black ductwork. I'll probably end up lowering the fan and sister the board. Would you recommend I sister both sides? How long should the sister board(s) be?
 
  #11  
Old 03-20-15, 04:13 PM
K
Member
Join Date: Apr 2014
Location: Nova Scotia
Posts: 647
Upvotes: 0
Received 4 Upvotes on 4 Posts
No home inspector should have an issue with that, in fact they should be happy to see mechanical ventilation installed in the attic.
 
  #12  
Old 03-20-15, 04:19 PM
chandler's Avatar
Banned. Rule And/Or Policy Violation
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: USA
Posts: 36,607
Upvotes: 0
Received 9 Upvotes on 8 Posts
I would not be happy to see mechanical ventilation. Passive wins, hands down. No maintenance and more effective, if installed properly (ie. soffit and ridge venting)
 
  #13  
Old 03-20-15, 04:27 PM
K
Member
Join Date: Apr 2014
Location: Nova Scotia
Posts: 647
Upvotes: 0
Received 4 Upvotes on 4 Posts
I agree chandler, but the fact that there is a fan in there means someone has addressed a ventilation problem and not left it to cook the roof. What the cause of the venting problem was and whether the fan solved it or not is another issue.

I personally prefer wind driven turbine vents over ridge vents as they move much more air and are not subject to blockages like some ridge vents are.
 
  #14  
Old 03-21-15, 04:39 AM
M
Forum Topic Moderator
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: USA - N.E.Tn
Posts: 45,643
Received 832 Upvotes on 729 Posts
Should we be concerned about the wood rotting? Should we stain and seal it along the cut?
As Larry said, no concern about it rotting [unless the roof leaks] and no need to stain or seal the wood.
 
  #15  
Old 03-21-15, 05:28 PM
J
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: United States
Posts: 18
Upvotes: 0
Received 0 Upvotes on 0 Posts
Thanks for the helpful responses. This is a great site and the administrators do an excellent job.
 
  #16  
Old 03-22-15, 04:04 AM
J
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: United States
Posts: 18
Upvotes: 0
Received 0 Upvotes on 0 Posts
I suspect the mechanical ventilation is not doing much. There is a screen over the vent that restricts ait flow considerably. Is there a way to improve on this and still keep the bugs and bats out?
 
  #17  
Old 03-22-15, 04:15 AM
M
Forum Topic Moderator
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: USA - N.E.Tn
Posts: 45,643
Received 832 Upvotes on 729 Posts
You want to leave the screen in place. While you could replace it with hardware cloth and that would keep critters out, it would allow bees and other insects in

I don't know much about mechanical ventilation of attics but with passive ventilation it's all about having enough intake and exhaust. What do you have in the way of intake? You want the air to enter low [usually soffit vents] and exit high [gable, ridge or other high vents]
 
  #18  
Old 03-22-15, 04:50 AM
chandler's Avatar
Banned. Rule And/Or Policy Violation
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: USA
Posts: 36,607
Upvotes: 0
Received 9 Upvotes on 8 Posts
One thing I see with that installation is you are drawing air from the outside, around the shroud, thus minimizing air flow from the attic. Is there a matching open gable on the other end?
 
  #19  
Old 03-22-15, 08:51 AM
J
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: United States
Posts: 18
Upvotes: 0
Received 0 Upvotes on 0 Posts
In answer to both marksr and chandler, yes, there are soffit vents in the unfinished space outside the knee walls on either side of the finished portion of the attic and a matching gable 35 ft away at the other end. There is at least a couple inches of space above the angled finished wall insulation allows air to flow from the unfinished attic space beyond the knee walls to the space between the gables above the "collar ties" that form the ceiling of the finished portion of the attic.
 
  #20  
Old 03-22-15, 09:07 AM
J
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: United States
Posts: 18
Upvotes: 0
Received 0 Upvotes on 0 Posts
Chandler, should I cover the portion of the screen outside the fan with thin plywood so more air is drawn from inside the attic?
 
  #21  
Old 03-22-15, 09:57 AM
chandler's Avatar
Banned. Rule And/Or Policy Violation
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: USA
Posts: 36,607
Upvotes: 0
Received 9 Upvotes on 8 Posts
If it were mine and I had only that fan and the other gable to move air, yes, some measure as innocuous as tar paper stapled outside the perimeters of the fan on the vent would help move air from the furthest point and not recirculate air immediately around the shroud.
 
  #22  
Old 03-22-15, 10:41 AM
J
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: United States
Posts: 18
Upvotes: 0
Received 0 Upvotes on 0 Posts
Thanks. I think I'll lower it a couple inches and then cover the portion of the vent outside the fan with either plywood or tar paper.
 
  #23  
Old 03-25-15, 04:58 PM
J
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: United States
Posts: 18
Upvotes: 0
Received 0 Upvotes on 0 Posts
On second thought, after reading info on the web about the evils of power venting, I'm considering other options (see my new thread).
 
 

Thread Tools
Search this Thread
 
Ask a Question
Question Title:
Description:
Your question will be posted in: