We all know that stable ambient temperature is what keeps us comfortable indoors. This is why we consider insulation such an important investment. Our HVAC heats or cools the air inside our homes, and we want to make the most of it. It makes perfect sense from both a comfort and an energy standpoint. But what few homeowners recognize is the importance of allowing air to flow freely through the home and out of the roof. It seems counterintuitive to let all that precious air escape, but without good roof ventilation, your home (and pocket) will soon suffer. The following graphic illustrates what roof ventilation can do for your roof and living spaces in the summer and winter months. In fact, the US Department of Energy goes so far to say that roof ventilation is the single most cost-effective way to keep your home cool during the warmer months, allowing you to enjoy maximum comfort and energy savings to boot. And as time goes by, good ventilation only builds on these advantages. The Dangers of Poor Ventilation A well-ventilated roof is a long-lasting roof. The inverse is also true. Below are some of the common issues associated with nonexistent or improper roof and attic ventilation: ● Mold and mildew. Ventilation provides a conduit through which warm, moist air can escape. Without it, your attic becomes humid, which leads to the growth of mold and mildew. ● Weak decking. Moisture can seep into your roof’s underlayment and weaken the adhesives that hold your roofing material in place. ● Premature roof deterioration. Granular loss, cracked shingles, and other signs of deterioration often result when heat and moisture are trapped under your roof. ● Ice dams. Ice dams form when warm air in your attic melts the snow on your roof, creating runoff. As the temperature drops, this melted snow refreezes. Repeated cycles of melting and refreezing result in ice dams that trap water at your eaves and cause massive amounts of damage. Types of Roof Ventilation There are several different types of roof ventilation ranging from basic static vents to more complex motorized units (power vents). Some of the most popular types include: ● Ridge vents. Ridge vents provide the most efficient exhaust ventilation. They are installed along the roof’s ridges and often run the entire length of the ridge. ● Soffit vents. Soffit vents facilitate intake ventilation. They are installed along the eaves or the underside of the roof’s overhang. ● Gable vents. Installed at the gables, these vents often come with a fan to improve their performance. ● Roof vents. These vents could take the place of ridge or gable vents for exhaust, provided they are placed higher up. They are installed right on the surface of the roof. Installation Considerations While having ventilation is a step in the right direction, it is not an end in itself. Ventilation has to be properly installed for it to be effective. The US Federal Housing Administration and the International Residential Code for One and Two-Family Dwellings recommend: ● 1 foot of both intake and exhaust ventilation for every 300 square feet, if half of the vent openings are along the soffits, and the other half are along the ridges. ● 1 foot of net-free ventilation for every 150 square feet of attic floor space, if there are only soffit vents. ● At least an inch (25 mm) of space between the insulation, the roof sheathing, and the soffit vents. Local building codes also have specific provisions regarding ventilation, especially in certain climate zones. Your best move would be to consult a licensed contractor to make sure that your roof and attic ventilation complies with all the necessary regulations. Author Bio: Jon Wright is professional roofer based in Texas and the owner of Jon Wright Industries. He is very passionate about what he does and loves to share his experiences to other people. Read more about him by liking his Facebook page.
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For a long time, tiles have been able to equip homes with sturdiness, interesting texture and color that can boost the overall outlook of homes. This alongside being cost friendly, water and crack resistant, easy to clean and durable has made them quite popular amongst many people especially those who strive to keep their homes decent. Essentially, having a well decorated home goes along way with a feeling of comfort, good family relationship and warm entertainment of guests. To this effect, there is need to choose the best way to decorate a home and here are essential tips that can help home owners.
Choosing the best floor tiles Basically, every home owner wants their home floor to look sparkling clean at all times as well as complementing the rest of the house decor. Tile floors can help them achieve this especially in the interior areas of the house such as the sitting room, kitchen, bathroom and even the porch. In fact, what they should simply do is to introduce a design element on their floors by installing different colors of floor tiles in such areas to the extent of creating a good pattern. Therefore, choosing the right tile for their floors must be in respect to their taste and preference so that they end up making their home floors look decent. Use decorative tiles to beautify home equipment Using decorative tiles is another attractive interior decoration option that home owners should exploit in revamping their homes. This is especially in decorating home equipment such as tables and mirror frames because they also add to the whole home appearance. Essentially, it is advisable for them to buy mosaic tiles because they are quite efficient in adding an appealing look to the entire home. Use tiles to decorate fireplaces It is essential for home owners to decorate areas around their fireplaces using the right tiles and designing the area well for an appealing outlook. Basically, there are special tiles that are heat resistant which they can purchase as they are available in different colors and texture. Therefore, depending on their taste and preferences they can go for the right ones that can be installed in areas around fireplaces. Nevertheless, there is no need to worry about cleaning the surface of the fireplace once you have the tiles in place because they are usually easy to clean. Therefore, using tiles in areas around fireplaces enhances the existing home appearance to a more desirable one. Consider using tiles to cover walls House walls are an essential part of home interior design and should depict a good picture at all times. Therefore, home owners need to consider using tiles on the walls in order to make them easy to clean and enhance home outlook. Tiles on the walls are best used in places such as the kitchen and bathroom because they make it easy for the home owner to remove food and liquids that come in contact with the walls. Additionally, it is important for a home owner to choose wall tiles colors wisely because this will enhance home appearance. Although decorating a home may seem to be a difficult task, using tiles makes it quite easy. However, it is essential to choose the right tiles and especially travertine pavers tile because they are smooth and possess the texture that every home requires. Diana is an author of this article. She is a home improvement blogger and a regular contributor to several home improvement blogs. Diana is interested in topics related to home renovation, decoration on a low budget, feng shui and gardening. In her free time she enjoys writing and exercising. When the young one is coming into the home, you need to take one long and good look into your house and imagine your baby growing in it. Suddenly, you will become aware of all the dangers that can happen to it, and you will want to protect it the best you can. The action of making your home more child friendly is called child proofing. That means that you have to pay attention to all the details and see what the things that you can do in order to make your child safe in your home are. Here are some of the things.
Electricity Sockets First you need to do is find all the sockets that you have around your home. Count them and head right to the hardware store and buy as many electricity socket covers as you can. They will make your sockets still available for you, but the little curious fingers will not be able to touch it or to stick anything in them. Fire Hazards Fire is a very dangerous thing. Therefore, make sure that you have installed fire detectors all over your home. You can buy them quite cheaply. Also, make sure that you always have fresh batteries in them. Some fire departments offer free fire detectors, so you can contact them and see if your local fire department is in that sort of program, and even if they aren’t, they will have some valuable advice for you. Gas Leakage There are some very handy gas leakage indicators that should be placed at all places where this can happen. They don’t even use batteries, so you just need to install them and let them do their work. Big and Heavy Objects Once a little toddler becomes old enough and starts learning how to walk, he will grab anything on his way in order to try and keep the balance. By doing that, he can pull the cord of a TV set, pull the table cloth with a heavy vase on it, or knock over a standing lamp. Check your home for such things and tether them or remove them completely. Plants Plants are wonderful in home, but kids may think so as well. They will pluck the leaves and certainly try to put them into their mouth. The same goes with the ground from the pots. Therefore, make sure that the plants aren’t easily reachable, get rid of all the toxic ones. Pets This is a very touchy subject for many pet owners. Some of them believe that pets should stay, while others believe that pets don’t have their place inside a house anyway. This is a tough debate, and you should decide for yourself. However, make sure that the decision you make is made together with your partner because it is their home also. You can always as for some advice from professionals who deal with the child proofing of homes. However, that may not be necessary as you can find the standards of safety that they use online as well and check your home on your own. Naturally, if you feel that you are not comfortable with installing some of the equipment on your own, call the professionals to do that for you. They will gladly do it. Author bio: Diana Smith is a passionate home improvement blogger interested in topic related to home decoration like how to choose the right tiles for your home, how to decorate a house on a small budget, how to feng shui your room, etc. Diana loves to see her readers getting useful information from her articles. |
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