Roof Turbine Vents
This is my favorite roof vent and my FAVORITE brand. It's Made in the USA! These are cave-man simple to install. Watch my video below. SAME procedure for this vent as the bath fan flashing. CLICK THE IMAGE NOW TO BUY THIS TURBINE VENT.
Roof Turbine Vent TIPS
- Works with the slightest breeze
- Moves vast amounts of air
- Will not leak in rain and snow
- Easy DIY installation
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DEAR TIM: My home has two spinning turbine vents. I have been told by several people that it is a good idea to stuff insulation in these during the winter months so that warm air is not sucked out of my attic space. Is this good advice? Are these turbine vents really effective? I don't see many of them on my neighbors' roofs so I wonder if I should remove them. Kevin M., Canal Winchester, OH
DEAR KEVIN: Don't touch those vents! They are splendid ventilation devices. In fact, I installed these same vents over 25 years ago on the second home I owned. They were hardworking devices that Mother Nature paid to operate. In fact, the same vents are still in place on the home and each time the slightest breeze blows, they do a great job of pulling air from the attic space.
Turbines Work For FREE
A turbine vent is a passive ventilation device. The popular ridge and soffit ventilation systems and the traditional metal pot vents are also passive ventilation systems.
A turbine vent spins with the slightest breeze. As soon as it starts to spin, it vacuums air out of your attic. The faster it spins, the more air it exhausts.
I'd put three or four on a roof to really have a good chance at cooling an attic on a hot summer day.
In contrast, an active ventilation device might be an electric-powered whole-house fan or a powered roof ventilator. Passive vents work for free and in almost all instances are silent.
Never Block Vent Holes
The last thing you want to do is stuff insulation in the vents. Ventilating attic spaces in winter months is often more important than venting them in summer.
Water vapor from the inside of a home drifts up and into an attic space. It does this 365/7/24. #HassleIfNotVented
Condensation HAZARD
If this water vapor is not quickly exhausted to the exterior atmosphere, it can often condense upon the cold roof framing members and the underside of the roof sheathing. It can get so bad that water can drip from the underside of the roof and when the temperature gets low enough, frost can actually form up inside the attic. Moisture conditions such as this can lead to wood rot and mold growth.
Thousands of CFM per Hour
Depending upon the diameter of the vents and the wind speed outdoors, the turbines can expel vast quantities of humid air before it becomes a problem. A small 12-inch-diameter turbine vent with a constant wind speed of 5 miles per hour (mph) can remove 347 cubic feet of air per minute (cfm) from the attic space.
A single 14-inch-diameter turbine vent that is subjected to 15 mph winds can expel up to 1,342 cfm of air! If the winds are still, the vents still allow air to drift up and out of the attic space, although not nearly as much.
Easy DIY Install
Watch my video below. The video shows a bathroom exhaust fan hood, not a turbine vent. But the method of installing a turbine vent is IDENTICAL.
If your roof is low slope and you can get up on it with ease, you can do the installation and save HUNDREDS of dollars.
Don't Steal Heat
It is also a myth that turbine vents remove warm air from attic spaces in winter months. If the air temperature in your attic space is very warm while it is cold outdoors, I maintain that you might have inadequate insulation and/or you are up in your attic on a bright sunny day where the radiant energy of the sun is heating the attic space.
It's best to check attic temperatures at night after the sun has gone down. If your attic is well insulated, the actual temperature of the air inside your attic should be very close to the actual outdoor temperature.
AC Leaks
However, it's possible for turbine vents to pull conditioned air from the inside of your home. Modern building principles and most model building codes mandate that you have soffit ventilation vents that act as intake air locations.
As air is pulled from the attic space by the turbine vent, ridge vent, or even an electric-powered fan, the same amount of air must be allowed to flow into the attic space where the roof passes over the exterior walls of the home.
If there is not enough soffit air coming in, then the vents may create a partial vacuum in the attic space. To relieve this pressure, the vacuum may pull air from the inside of your home. This is not a good idea.
Aluminum = No Rust
If you decide to add more turbine vents to your roof, be sure to buy ones that are aluminum. These will not rust. In addition, pay attention to the maximum roof pitch that will work with the turbines.
The turbines are adjustable so that the spinning part is level even though the roof is slanted. Not all turbines will fit all roof pitches. The maximum roof pitch is almost always printed on the box label.
Lubricate the Bearings
Finally, be sure the ball bearings are permanently lubricated and sealed. Nothing is more bothersome in the middle of a windy night than a squeaky roof turbine!
Column 442
Are turbine vents water-tight or will external rainwater be able to enter the vent and possible get into the room interior??
They are designed with a concave shape and rain with the wind will not enter.Also the wind will spin the turbine causing the water to bounce or be spun away.I"ve had turbines 15.years on my home and never had water damage .If any did enter it was so minimal it evaporated quickly.
Are there Turbine vents that one can mount on the ridge of a roof?
Randy, your question require lots of typing and I have some questions for you. You should consider investing in a 15-Minute Consult with me. Look at my cart for that. Lot's to discuss. I just do short pithy answers here.
Isn't 'well insulated' when the outside and inside temperatures are slowed from balancing out right away? You make it sound like making something well insulated means having it open to external temperatures rather than locked off from them.
My roof turbine vents do not spin as much as my neighbors, even on a windy day. Any quick fixes?
Can you say oil?
I would like to put a 14" in the middle of my garage roof so it won't be so oppressive out there when the temp is over 90.
Problem is we can get well over 2 feet of snow in the winter. How did you deal with that in Ohio?
And, should I put some diverter rails above the turbine
Me and my husband notice that we don't have
The vents turbine vents on the roof. We didn't know if this was a bad thing and wanted to know
Thank you .
I have 4 roof turbines. One was sqeeking for a bit, then stopped spinning. I am worried that if it starts raining, will this cause water to drain into the attic if its not covered? I teally need an answer. And if the turbine needs to be replaced how much is the 14 inch black ?
Can you say *oil it*? :->>>>>
my roofer is telling me my turbans are to close to my roof vents and this can create a problem. He states the turban can pull rain water into the attic.
Your roofer is giving you misinformation. I've had turbine vents for years and never a drop of water in my attic.
My husband n I
just bought a home. I noticed rope on vent to keep it from spinning should we take the rope off it is hotter in there than outside.
The turbine vents should be allowed to spin. Don't count on one or two turbine vents to lower attic temperatures significantly. You need TENS of THOUSANDS of cubic feet of air per minute passing through the attic to get the temperature to drop.
I'm thinking about installing a wind turbine ventilator in my very hot garage. Should I be concerned about - or take any precautions to insure a necessary air supply for - the natural gas powered water heater in the garage?
You should follow all recommendations that are called out for by the water heater manufacturer. A supply of combustion air is always a good idea!
if I already have ridge vents will roof turbines help, hurt or just be ineffective.
I think you need to read all of my Turbine Vent columns again and pay attention to what I say. 🙂
Very very helpful.....
Do rotary turbines need to be installed where are above the ridge line to catch wind from all directions? I just had a new roof and whirlybirds installed and I can't see them from the front of my house while standing in the street. When I drive down the street, I can see my neighbors whirlybirds from the street. The roofers installed a whirlybird in the hole where an non working electric attic ventilator was located 40 inches from the ridge line . Then they lined up the other whirlybirds with it. For them to operate effectively, should they be visible above the ridge line, even if barely above the ridge line?
They don't have to be near the peak, but when placed there, they remove more of the hot air trapped under the peak.
I prefer to locate them so they're NOT VISIBLE from the street. Believe me, they'll spin if not peeking above the peak!
My home is a southern ranch that doesnt have an attic. I want to install some wind turbines to remove excess humidity and associated cold when the weather during the colder months and rainy season make my house uncomfortable to live in. The volume of my home is just under 12,000 square feet. What is a good APH (air changes per hour) to keep my house comfortable, and what size and how many wind turbine ventilators would you recommend me having installed? Many thanks for taking the time to answer!
I cover this in a few past columns about the same topic. Type: "turbine vent" into my search engine and read ALL the results.
How tricky is it to install a turban on a metal roof with gradual pitch
It's not too bad. The trick is to make a horizontal slit in the metal roof that's the EXACT width of the base flashing for the turbine vent. The top 2/3s of the vent base flashing slides up UNDER the metal roof.
Good day
Do you have a specifications table or chart for such ventilator that have ventilator speed Vs wind speed, and dimensions… etc. I want more information for my company project.
regards
No. But you may find it at the manufacturers' websites.
Should i cover up my rotary turbine if we have a really cold winter, Nor' easter?
Thanks
NO!!!! You want the turbines to SPIN in the winter to exhaust water vapor that seeps from your house into your attic!
I HAD plans on trash bagging mine up for the winter I just installed but not now! Thx Tim! Besides they look cool huh? I'm digging the glossy black. Being a musician with jams indoors and out the black is so cool!
Gonna pick up a couple more and have a turbine party soon!
Do NOT cover turbine vents in the winter!!! You need them to exhaust out water vapor.
During a Storm one of my turbines fell in the back yard. I'm gone for a week, if it should rain while I'm gone can it rain into the Roof.
If a storm creates a hole in your roof, water will get inside. Unless...... unless you know a group of wizards, I belong to such a group here in NH, that will cast a protective spell on your home and all it's underwater allies.
Will it rain into my roof ,my turbine came of in a storm.
If the turbine is oiled and spins freely, it will not rain into your home.
Hi, the house that we bought had a turbine and i've seen it rotating but winter comes, i noticed it stop rotating for a couple of weeks now. Is there problem to that? Thanks!
It just may not be windy enough to cause it to rotate. Just don't cover it like some do. That's a huge mistake.
my whirleybird freezes in the winter since I upgraded the insulation in my attic. there are also eavestrough vents, but the whirleybird looks like a big snowball. we knock the snow off, but need to figure out what's going wrong. I live in Saskatchewan and so we are dealing with very cold winter temperatures. any suggestions?
You must have VAST amounts of water vapor in the home that's escaping into the attic as it should. This water vapor then FREEZES to the cold metal of the turbine vent. Explore what might be causing so much water vapor in your home. READ all my past columns about WATER VAPOR.
I have eve vents and a turbine vent in the house i just bought. I want to finish the space how can i finish it? Do i need to install a new roof and ridge vent to finish the attic space bedroom. Thanks!
Cameron,
If you want to know how to finish this space, we need to talk on the phone. Way too much information to put here in this small space.
Consider this: http://shop.askthebuilder.com/products/15-Minute-Phone-Conversation-with-Tim.html
I had a roof put on two years ago and I upgraded to ridge vents and a turbine vent in place of the power fan vents I also added a second turbine also. My wife did like how they looked on the house so we had the contractor paint them. I soon notice that mine didn't spend like my neighbors even in A strong wind they spent slower than normal. Please advise
I am getting a new roof and currently have 5 pan vents and soffit intake venting. My house is a 2 story, 3,000 sf total. The Eagle view shows the roof to be 4,300sf. My roofer originally recommended ridge venting. But upon further discussion he went to the Lomanco dealer and presented the Eagle view and the dealer said the best solution was to replace the pan vents with 5 turbine vents. Any thoughts on this? And, is 5 turbines too many?
4 months ago I had a new roof put on my house I use to have 2 whirlybirds the roofer told me I should put a third one on so I had him add another 12 inch whirlybird on my 1400 square foot home now I usually only see 1 spin. They are brand new. Any ideas
Can rain water be blown into your turbine and cause your roof to start leaking?
Our roof is damaged and my husband insist that is what caused the problem. So he has put a trash bag over it. Is he right, and should it be covered???
Water can only enter a turbine vent if it's not spinning - lack of oil on the bearings, or someone installed the flashing wrong and it's leaking. Turbine vents are the BEST static vents known to man or woman. You can tell your husband he's making a mistake covering it and he should get up on the roof and see what's wrong with it.
My son's house is hot during the day. We had the a/c checked everything is fine. The turbine on the house are spinning a little. Do I need bigger turbines. The house 2000 sq ft living area.
I installed per the directions but was unable to get elbow level. Will this be a problem for spinning or rain?
Tim...a couple questions... Which whirlybird is better; externally braced or internally? My attic has a ridge vent with plastic inserts between rafters.... Soffit vents are limited due to no real soffit. Will the whirly birds draw more are through the ridge than the house? I also have an attic window fan(king-aire) and a bathroom vent... Will these be effected by the whirlybird? Location of the whirlybird on the roof: needs to be 5' from the ridge since attic is finished...is whirlybird better located in the crawl space storage areas?
Thank you in advance....maybe a sketch can be sent... I think I hit the high points....
Hans
Is there a way to quiet these things? There's one on the roof of my apartment. And all day long I hear that spinning, it's driving me crazy. And no, I don't think it needs oil, as it doesn't squeak. It just spins!!! ALL... DAY... LONG...
I need to have my roof replaced and wondered if I should replace the wind turbines at the same time. My roofer said I didn't need to, but the insurance adjuster included them in their estimate. They are galvanazed, but work just fine.
If they're in great shape, leave them alone. At least oil the bearings while all this work is going on.
Tim, wanted to thank you for all the insights. Have a shed turbine that has been letting water in, but your threads have given me plenty of info to dive into it. One question remains. It sounds like one of the main reasons to vent the attic is to release moisture, but what about places where the outside air is very humid?
have no soffit vents and no way to install them but i have a gable vent on the east side and one on the southside..if i install a turban on the westside will it pull air in the gables and reduce the condensation in my attia it a problem on the northside of the attic..any help will be appreciated thank you..
TIM, HELP, I WAS TOLD AS LONG AS MY TURBINE ROOF VENT IS SPINNING SNOW WOULD NOT ACCUMULATE AROUND IT. IT HAS STOPPED. DO I NEED TO HAVE THE SNOW REMOVED ? THE COMPLETE TURBINE IS STILL VISIBLE. THANK YOU
Hello,
Can i implement this for my house(villa) to get natural air (roof top)
What will be the approximate cost, if possible.
Thanks,
Janardhan
If one is to follow your advice and leave roof turbine vents uncovered during the winter, why are there so many vent covers on the market?
I've lived in a house with turbines for 26 years, have covered them every winter and have never had a moisture problem in the attic. The plastic covers have now given out and I'm looking for replacements--maybe canvas or something heavier although the black plastic has given me about 8 years each time. I intend to keep covering the turbines because that works for my climate. Perhaps you should qualify your advice as it relates to the homeowner's geography and climate. The West is a hell of a lot different from the East Coast in terms of average humidity etc.
Because some people don't use common sense and are led to believe the vents should be covered!
Perhaps you should spend a little time dusting off your high school physics book and pay lots of attention to the part about vapor pressure, condensation, and air density.
But my guess is you'll not do that because you feel that your past performance is a valid indicator of future behavior.
Tim,
My girlfriend just moved into a condo where they have the hot water heater underneath the turbine vent. They've extended the exhaust pipe to go straight up into the spinning turbine. Have you heard of this being done before? Is it safe?
I just moved into a house and the carport was converted into more living space I have one maybe two turbine vents but I need to know what other vents or how many more turbine vents do I need to bring down the temperature because my house always seems warmer than outside (spring n summer) even worth the added insulation. ...PLEASE HELP!!!!
Help. I had two great tall turbines and one had a broken blade. Roofer said they don't make the tall ones any more and I can't find them anywhere online. The taller one spins but new shorter one doesn't. Is there a way to get an extension to make the shorter one taller? Thanks
You might try a hardware store and get duct connector that will fit over your elbow.They are usually a foot long. They also make reducers that are like 12" to 10" and maybe put it inside your elbow with sheet metal screws.So you'll have correct size hole on top same as original hole size.
What if my roof turbine vent broke a few of the slots from a storm ... is that bad? Do I need to replace it?
Obviously you have never visited Canada up here we have things like ice and snow! They do freez up in ice storms and snow acumilation. My next door neighbor spent a day digging out his attic bucket after bucket after his USA built vents froze solid and allowed snow yes snow to blow in. Years later they were the noisiest things ever and he oiled them all the time. We have vents that cover the vent that don't allow snow in like a vent cover that you can purchase for rv trailer.
My top of house turbines have rust on them.. Can I paint them?
Tim, I have a fairly new roof with new turbine vents. My house sits North/South with the vents on the North side. I've installed extra soffit vents to supply more intake air, but my birds just aren't moving with a South wind. My neighbor 15' away has a tree on his west side and his birds are buzzing off his roof while mine are still. Birds are leveled and oiled. Instead of cutting into my roof to raise my birds, is there an extension made for turbine vents? I'm a function guy, not an aesthetics gut. I'll raise them up over the peak to catch wind. It's about 3" below.
Thanks
I cannot install soffit vents as there is no soffit. I have four slant back roof vents at the top of the roof, but need to feed it. So I was thinking I could install more of the same slant back roof vents at the bottom of the roof, and that while imperfect compared to soffit vents (which again are impossible for my situation) those lower roof vents would allow in cool air and feed the upper roof vents. Will that work at all?
Can you reuse turbine ventilators? When tearing off and teshingling
Is there a way to balance a wobbly turbine?
Hi,
Once again some good advice. Along with a passive roof-top vent I have a turbine vent here in Northern Ontario. Although it is close to the ridge-line some winters it is completely buried in snow. It seems to catch the snow as I have seen quite a bit below it in the attic. So I think they would be great further south. A lot of contractors around here like "Ventillation Maximum" at the ridge. They stick up, don't spin and have a sort of pagoda shape. Now according to Joseph Lstiburek at Building Science, the entire roof needs to be washed with fresh dry air and you should have a bit more soffit ventilation than at the ridge particularly in an older home with ceilings that leak along walls or ceiling fixtures. This way one doesn't create a negative pressure in the attic and doesn't make the stack effect so bad if you have a lot of ceiling leakage that a lot of heat and humidity is entering the attic. I heard that a lot of homes in Canada have over-ventillated attics.
Good morning. Thanks to your page here I am learning lots...so..thank you. My concern is the 'rumble' that the one over our bedroom makes. Is this the norm? All night long....the rumbling....
Gary Haupt
Gary,
It's the norm if it wasn't maintained. The bearings around the axle need to be lubricated. Most homeowners don't do this. Try getting up and squirting the bearings with some heavy motor oil and see what happens.
Our turbine had a small wobble from day one. As it is so efficient removing hot air we can live with it UNTIL we get big winds and gusts that exaggerate the wobble until it sounds like its about to self destruct.
Local suppliers stock all seems to have a slight wobble straight out of the box - is this normal? is it possible to re-balance the rotating part?
My new turbine vent is not spinning at all. Could the cause be that the installer did not LEVEL the turbine? It looks a little slanted compared to the old one it replaced. Which turned fine. I only replaced it to match the new roof!
Yes. Or it could be a POC - piece of crap - vent your roofer used. Go above and CLICK the LARGE IMAGE of the turbine vent you see in my column. BUY that brand and never have an issue again. BE sure the base is adjusted so it's level before the turbine is overlaid and secured.
Hi, I want to install a turbine vent in my home's backyard. The thing is the height of the roof (made up of aluminium frame and covered by fiber sheet) is around 11 ft. The area is opened at one end and has a window AC installed at the other. If I fix a vent right near the AC's back will the hot air from the AC be able to rotate the vent.
PS: The backyard is covered by high walls as there are other floors around it.
Thanks
HA
I'm reminded of the Nike shoes motto:
Just Do It
Tim, I just spent several thousand dollars to get my attic insulated comma sprayed with a radiant heat barrier, and ventilated. The company installed to Whirlybirds but not at the peak of the attic Ridge. They are not spinning. They drilled soffits around several sides of the house but I am not sure that these tiny drill holes actually made it into the Attic. I thought with enough intake air and heat build-up in the Attic that those Whirlybirds would be turning all the time. When I called the company a week after installation, they said well is the wind blowing? I don't think that is the only reason The Whirlybirds should turn!?
What to say to them? What to do?
You need wind to make most of them spin. It's unrealistic to think they would spin from just heat rising out of the attic.
According to some reviews I read about Lomanco turbine vents, the Lomanco vents don't turn with the stack effect but other brands do. And it's not unrealistic to expect a turbine vent to turn with the stack on a windless day. When I drive in my town, I see a lot of turbine vents do that.
We have a 5000 sq ft warehouse and 1 walk thru door and a car size garage door on the opposite end. The ceiling are 24' high and I have zero ventilation. I put a 48" fan in front of the garage door to suck cool air in from outside. I cannot open the walk thru door for ventilation. Will the turbine vents spin from the inner pressure as a result of the 48" fan pulling in air from the garage door?
We just had a bad storm this past Monday and for the first time in 15 years my ceiling is wet under turbine vent that's less than 2 yrs old. I'm going into attic this am to see and pull out wet insulation. I can see the turbine vent spinning but now wondering what to do to keep this from happening in future.
That must have been a vicious storm. You may want to buy a large plastic flat clothes-storage bin and place it under the turbine vent to capture any future rain. I know this sounds like a Rub Goldberg solution, but it will work. The water will evaporate in no time during the next sunny days. Here's one I love:
http://amzn.to/2vme7qg
I have two turbines but they aren't level horizontally but works as intended. I'm afraid when it rains real hard that it may be seeping in rain and causing a little ceiling stain or popcorn bubbling. Should they be straightened horizontally?
It would be a good idea to follow all written installation instructions. Did you read yours before installing? I'm sure the manufacturer said to level the base before dropping the turbine onto it.
Thank you. Actually, I had a couple maintenance guys do it but since writing you, have seen a few YouTube videos and will need to be straightened. Have a great weekend!
We leave in Southern Florida a hurricane is approaching and my husband wants to remove the wind driven ventilaots and cover them with a metal cap rhat will adjust exactly to secure in case the ventilator get ripped from the roof. He had some he bought years ago but they do not fit, they are a little small less than an inch. Please help
Hilda,
I would wrap TIGHTLY the vents with two layers of 6 mil plastic and tape well.
Circle the plastic with the tape so the wind can't get a purchase under an edge.
I wish you the best of luck.
Hi Tim!
Great article. I didn't know exactly what I had for a ventilation system until I started reading some of your article. I have a gable vent system with the roof turbine. I only have one turbine so next year when I have my roof replaced I'll have them add two more.
My question is insulating the underside of the roof in the knee wall in my attic. I don't have soffit vents so I'm assuming I can run the insulation up these areas without the use of baffles. Is that correct?
Thanks in advance Tim and Happy Thanksgiving!
The insulation can't touch the underside of the roof. Maintain a 2-inch air space. You should do whatever's possible to install some soffit ventilation.
Thanks for the reply. The attic is dry and we have never had a moisture problem. There are no eaves on the house. It was built in 1952.
Are you saying when we have a new roof put on that we should have the eaves added along with soffit and ridge vents?
I guess I was thinking that if the gable vents along with the turbine were keeping the moisture out of the attic since there were no soffit vents I could insulate the roof as well. I'll skip that idea though!
We're having trouble keeping the bedroom warm. There is insulation on the backside of the wall and the floor in the knee wall area. I'm starting to wonder if the heating itself is an issue. It's far away from the furnace and of course they ran the ductwork through the knee wall region although it is insulated.
I'm stumped on what to do to try and get the room warmer.
Thanks again Tim!
Eric,
It's time to elevate this situation to one of my phone consults. Far too many moving parts to discuss.
http://shop.askthebuilder.com/products/15-Minute-Phone-Conversation-with-Tim.html
We have a roof turbine. Since 2 years since roof was redone we have been having issues with the turbine vent. There seems to be a lot of condensation accumulation in the drip bucket. So much that it spills down the pipe that is attached to the ceilling. The turbine is pulling air not only from the attic but also from the inside of the house. It is attched to an air vent on the ceiling of our bungalow. Should the turbine only be pulling air from the attic? Also. Do you know why 2 years ago there didn'tseem to be an issue?
I recently purchased a cape style home. We have two turbines on the peak of our roof. As it is a cape, there is no attic so the second floor is what is being vented. It is considerably cooler on the second floor due to these vents, making it expensive to heat, as I feel drafts and warmth being lost due to them. We were told by the home inspector to just shove a pillow up there during the winter. We did not do that this year, but based on our heating costs considering doing it next year. That is my first issue with them, what is the best plan of action for this?
Secondly, last week we had a nasty snowstorm, with heavy snowfall & ice buildup. From what I gather snow chunks got stuck in the turbines & then began to melt from the sun, causing water to drip down into second floor & chunks of ice to slip through the turbine into the vent and onto our carpeted floor. This doesn’t usually happen when it snows, but does occur, is there a way to prevent this?
The best way to prevent the drips, etc. is to position a large plastic pan under the vents up in the attic.
It's a small one-time inconvenience, but you'll never have to worry again.
Here's the kind I'm talking about. You want to look and order the largest one you can get - width and length:
http://amzn.to/2GeTKPQ
Thank you for the video of how to install a turbine vent. I was outside today and noticed that the turbine was hanging off of the base. I got a bit panicked but realized that it shouldn't take much to attach it back in place. Guess I will be putting out a call to my son or brother-in-law.:)... I am not a fan of heights.
Hi, we r replacing a vent on the roof and it measures 13 inches. We bought one that is 14 inches. The previous vent has a lot of tar used can I slide the new one over the old base and fasten it down?
Can this be used to generate electricity instead of venting attics? Thanks!
No. The roof vent doesn't have enough surface area to spin a generator. They already make wind turbines for houses. Get one of those.
hi Tim I have 2 vents on my roof but one is about 4-5” taller than the other one does the height affect the turbine
No. Within reason of course. Follow the manufacturer's install instructions.
The reason it’s higher is because I had to replace just the turbine and the pipe that came with the new one was that height I could cut it down but if it is still effective I’ll leave it
This question is a bit odd, but if anyone knows sure you guys would! I am building an outhouse for our hunting shack, and plan to run a 4" PVC pipe stack from hole through the roof. Wondering if I affixed a whirlybird atop it, if it would essentially act as an exhaust system. Appreciate any response, thanks for your time!
I have a flat roof garage with two turbine vents. I get a lot of dust in it - i.e. a layer of film I have to wipe off the ping pong table every week or two. I'm sure some comes in when opening the garage door but wondering if some comes in through the vent. Could I put n air filter of some kind under the openings?
if it rains hard enough,it can't spin,and they leak.
This only happens to turbine vents that have not been maintained and the bearings are rusty.
What is the maximum cfm of an 18 inch collar roof turbine? I would like to install a 24 inch whole house fan that has maximum 4500 cfm speed. Currently I live in slc, ut. I already have 2 eve vents approximately 12x18 inches. Trying to most effectively add appropriate and easiest ventilation. Thanks.
Hi Tim,
Great page you have here.
I'm looking to install a turbine in my garage. The garage has no attic, so the air will vent directly from the garage through the roof. If it's quality and in good condition, will the spinning turbine be audible if I'm sitting in the room? I have a home studio in there, so I'd like to keep the noise down.
Hi
Please suggest me that if I can install turbine ventilator on the flat roof of second floor of my house, or this should be installed only in attic?
Thanks
Please comment or email on this scenario:
If a turbine vent can pull out A/C air, then it can also pull out exhaust from a fireplace chimney or a stove exhaust vent.
I don't see anyone talking about this hazard. But I began to investigate this after a friend had severe flu symptoms, which are often if not usually a sign of indoor air pollution. They had several turbine vents on their roof and a stove and fireplace. They thought they were careful with venting, but this is an overlooked hazard. No?
What is the max roof pitch for a 14” turbine vent
We recently had to have our electric panel replaced. When the electrician was done we kept hearing what sounded like a car running. We couldn't figure out where it was coming from. Finally we checked the attic and there is something up there, a fan or something that I guess was unhooked before.what would this be. I wasn't told there was an attic fan when I bought the house.
Dear Tim, You write the best articles. I think I read this one years ago and have been impressed with the concept of one of these doing two functions. We live in Columbus, Ohio which must be the cloudiest city in the country. I can't imagine Solar energy being practical here. But I always thought one of these roof turbines if heavy duty enough and with quality ball bearing could power a small wind turbine in the attic. With four on the roof I thought it might be better than solar, at least here in Ohio. You know way more than I do, What do you think? Would it be do it yourself or would a roof turbine manufacturer need to build it in? Just a fun idea I've been tossing around in my brain. Thanks for your Sunday emails and your article collection. Your recent article on solar was right on. Enjoy your winter, Ken
What about roof turbine vents that have ice on them & are making loud bumping noises because the ice is blocking it from turning properly? This happened last year but only lasted for a day until ice melted. It took me a long time to figure out what that bumping noise inside my house was and then track it to the area beneath that vent.
Now, we have ice again today - a year later and I'm hearing the same bumping noise. I'm concerned at what damage might be caused.
What can I do when the rain comes through? Would the flat do better on 1250sq.ft home