New Roof = Very Hot Upstairs

Hello everyone! I'm hoping someone here can give me some insight as to why the top living level of this house became very hot since putting on a new roof barely a week ago.

First, here's the house (I hope this works!):
http://www.biggerpockets.com/galleries/show/8062

Next, here's some info on the house:
[ul]

30 years old

about 1800 sf

Tri-level: front of house is 1 level; rear is 2 levels

First (front) level interior ceilings are vaulted, but it is a dropped ceiling (there is about a foot or two of airspace between ceiling [li]joists and rafters). When you're up in the attic above the 2-story part of the house, you can see to the front of the house, through that airspace. I'm telling you this because I am convinced we are getting the airflow we need from the soffit vents. Of course, I could be wrong.

Entire attic (including dead space above vaulted ceiling) is insulated.

There are soffit vents on the front and rear of the house.

Insulation is not blocking vents

We did a tear off of the old shingles, replaced all boots/stacks, and installed new 35-year dimensional shingles (and new felt paper, of course).

We installed ridge vent. Previously, there was no ridge vent; neither were there any gable vents or fans in the attic--just the soffit vents. I thought we'd get some improvement in the amount of heat that stayed trapped in the upper level, but it's incredibly worse.

I had considered installing a turban vent instead of or in addition to the ridge vent, but the folks at the roofing supply place advised me against it. They said you can have too much ventilation.

This is not a good situation, and I could really use some advice. Do I need to add a turban vent? Or what? Was it a mistake to install ridge vent? Help!!!!

Edited: 06/26/2010 at 01:18PM by Moderator : fixed link

Just Don

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Jun 20 '10, 10:24 AM

I know some about this. Ridge vent is a good thing. there are good and cheap brands and styles.

is the soffit vented continuously or only ever now and then?

how big of slot did they cut in top sheathing?

Do you have other forms of vent? like mushroom or cans or end gable vents? you should NOT

you will have to research types of best vent for ridge.

It should have been better not worse. They did cut sheathing I hope,,,some cheapo roofers might have shortcut that.

Edited: 06/26/2010 at 01:18PM

Sam M.

Real Estate Investor · Kalispell, Montana

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Jun 20 '10, 03:53 PM

Did you go from a light colored shingle to the darker ones?
It is often very hot in an attic anyway so how do you know it is so much worse?

You will be able to see how much plywood was cut back at the ridge the accommodate venting. How much of a gap is there?

Edited: 06/26/2010 at 01:18PM

Terri Pour-Rastegar

Real Estate Investor · Charlotte & Fort Mill SC, North Carolina

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Jun 20 '10, 10:13 PM

To answer your questions . . .

The soffit venting is continuous on the front and rear of the home--under the gables, there is no venting.

Before the new roof there was NO ridge vent at all. So, although I have not yet climbed into the attic to see how large an opening was made for the ridge vent, I should think ANY size opening would be better than what was there before. I will climb into the attic today though.

I don't know how hot the attic itself is, but I do know that the upper living space is extremely hot. There is a marked difference in temperature the minute you get up there, and that was not the case before. If the upper living space is this hot, the attic must be even worse.

Yes, this roof is just a shade darker than the old one. However, I've lived in homes with black roofing that did not have this problem.

Edited: 06/26/2010 at 01:18PM

Sam M.

Real Estate Investor · Kalispell, Montana

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Jun 20 '10, 11:48 PM

Another possibility as that working on the roof somehow shook the insulation off the knee walls. It is a long shot but still a possibility.

If it did not have venting before and improper venting install would not account for a change.

How much insulation is typical for attic/ceiling in the Carolina's? I would think you still use minimum R-30 mainly for the heat.

Edited: 06/26/2010 at 01:18PM

Jon Holdman

Real Estate Investor · Wheat Ridge, Colorado

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Jun 21 '10, 12:50 AM

Is this place air conditioned? Do the ducts run through the ceiling? If so, could some of the duct have been damaged or disconnected during the re-roofing?

Edited: 06/26/2010 at 01:18PM

Jon Holdman, Flying Phoenix LLC

J Scott

Real Estate Investor · Atlanta, Georgia

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Jun 21 '10, 01:36 AM

As usual, Jon said what I was going to say (only sooner and better :)...

I've had this happen on two jobs where the roofer had to fix some cracked roof joists, and while in the attic, he disconnected some HVAC ducts for easier access.

Edited: 06/26/2010 at 01:18PM

J Scott, Lish Properties, LLC
Telephone: 770-906-6358
Website: http://www.123flip.com
http://www.123flip.com

Steve Babiak

Real Estate Investor · Audubon, Pennsylvania

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Jun 21 '10, 01:39 AM

The other element of central air conditioning is the return vents and ducts. If they aren't connected - could be a problem. If the return vents aren't high up on the walls, could be a problem of not returning the hotter air (that rises, of course). If there is no return vent on that upper level - could be a problem.

Edited: 06/26/2010 at 01:18PM

Terri Pour-Rastegar

Real Estate Investor · Charlotte & Fort Mill SC, North Carolina

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Jun 22 '10, 03:22 AM

Thanks for all of the input. I don't think the ducting or vents could be the problem because none of the decking was disturbed, except for one small area around an old boot; and that was nowhere near any ducting.

My roofing worker is as stumped as I am, since we both thought any additional venting would be better than what I had before. He has offered to install a turbine vent (or two), as I wish, along with expanding the opening under the new ridge vent. I suppose both of those options could only help. I just don't want to cause any problems by over-venting (is that even possible?).

I'll let you know how it goes. Thanks again!!!

Edited: 06/26/2010 at 01:19PM

Just Don

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Jun 22 '10, 03:33 AM

did you find out what brand/style of ridge vent they used?

Edited: 06/26/2010 at 01:19PM

Eric Wang

Real Estate Investor · San Jose, California

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Jun 22 '10, 05:53 AM

Was your old shingle composite or wood shingle?

Edited: 06/26/2010 at 01:19PM

Kevin C.

Real Estate Investor · North of Dallas, Texas

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Jun 22 '10, 06:00 AM

Have you checked the temp of the air coming from each of your A/C vents?

I had a hot room after a new HVAC system was installed and it turned out a damper from the main HVAC trunk had inadvertently been closed almost all the way during the changeout of the HVAC system.

The ductwork ran through the attic and with the reduced flow, the temp of the air leaving the duct on that run was well above the temp of the other ducts.

The reduced flow was not really noticeable - I identified the problem by shooting the temp of all the vents with an IR temp gun.

All vents had temps in the high 50's, low 60's, a vent to one room had a temp in the mid 70's - traced that vent back to the trunk and found the damper mostly closed.

You couldn't see the issue without partially removing the insulated ductwork from the HVAC trunk.

Any vent with an abnormally high exiting air temp compared to the rest of the vents would be an indication of a problem (damper closed, leaky duct, insulation missing from duct etc).

Only takes a minute to shoot all the vent temps to see if there is a problem.

Edited: 06/26/2010 at 01:19PM

Kevin C.

Real Estate Investor · North of Dallas, Texas

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Jun 22 '10, 06:28 AM

Shooting the temp of all your A/C vents will point you in the direction of the problem.

If you find vents that are blowing abnormally warm air (when compared to all the other vents), you've found where you need to start looking.

While you're at it, shoot areas of the ceiling to see if you have any hot spots.

Abnormally high temps anywhere are going to point you in the right direction.

Just feeling with your hand will not give you the information you need, a temp gun will.

A decent IR temp gun is not very expensive and comes in real handy when troubleshooting hot/cold issues.

Edited: 06/26/2010 at 01:19PM

Luis Leon

Roofing Contractor · Woodlands, Texas

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Oct 10 '10, 11:55 AM

Originally posted by Terri Pour-Rastegar

Hello everyone! I'm hoping someone here can give me some insight as to why the top living level of this house became very hot since putting on a new roof barely a week ago.

First, here's the house (I hope this works!):
http://www.biggerpockets.com/galleries/show/8062

Next, here's some info on the house:
[ul]
30 years old

about 1800 sf

Tri-level: front of house is 1 level; rear is 2 levels

First (front) level interior ceilings are vaulted, but it is a dropped ceiling (there is about a foot or two of airspace between ceiling [li]joists and rafters). When you're up in the attic above the 2-story part of the house, you can see to the front of the house, through that airspace. I'm telling you this because I am convinced we are getting the airflow we need from the soffit vents. Of course, I could be wrong.

Entire attic (including dead space above vaulted ceiling) is insulated.

There are soffit vents on the front and rear of the house.

Insulation is not blocking vents

We did a tear off of the old shingles, replaced all boots/stacks, and installed new 35-year dimensional shingles (and new felt paper, of course).

We installed ridge vent. Previously, there was no ridge vent; neither were there any gable vents or fans in the attic--just the soffit vents. I thought we'd get some improvement in the amount of heat that stayed trapped in the upper level, but it's incredibly worse.

I had considered installing a turban vent instead of or in addition to the ridge vent, but the folks at the roofing supply place advised me against it. They said you can have too much ventilation.

This is not a good situation, and I could really use some advice. Do I need to add a turban vent? Or what? Was it a mistake to install ridge vent? Help!!!!

Hi,
For your soffit vents to work properly, there should be no obsturctions from the intake to the ridgevent(i.e. insulation). Your roof should of had a form of ventilation before that your roofer removed and replace with ridgevent. It is a different system and when installed properly, you will feel a difference! Baffles are installed when insulation is present to give space for proper ventilation especially in cathedral ceilings. Remember heat rises and if it cannot escape, you will be feeling it....Luis

Luis Leon

Roofing Contractor · Woodlands, Texas

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Oct 10 '10, 11:57 AM

Originally posted by Terri Pour-Rastegar

To answer your questions . . .

Yes, this roof is just a shade darker than the old one. However, I've lived in homes with black roofing that did not have this problem.

Luis Leon

Roofing Contractor · Woodlands, Texas

69 posts
2 awards
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Oct 10 '10, 12:08 PM

Originally posted by Terri Pour-Rastegar

To answer your questions . . .

Yes, this roof is just a shade darker than the old one. However, I've lived in homes with black roofing that did not have this problem.

Hello,
The color thing is a myth that's why you did not feel a difference with the black roof. Shingles are composed of ceramic granules which reflect the suns ultraviolet rays. The ceramic is dyed which is what gives you your roof color but reflects the same amount of rays in your roof is blue, black, or pink. You had ventilation in the past. Your roofer cancelled it and installed ridgevent incorrectly leaving you with a new hot roof. The box shows him how to install it. If it fell on his head maybe he could learn by osmosis....

Tim W.

Real Estate Investor · Indiana, Indiana

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Dec 12 '10, 04:21 AM

Originally posted by Luis Leon

Hi,
For your soffit vents to work properly, there should be no obsturctions from the intake to the ridgevent(i.e. insulation). Your roof should of had a form of ventilation before that your roofer removed and replace with ridgevent. It is a different system and when installed properly, you will feel a difference! Baffles are installed when insulation is present to give space for proper ventilation especially in cathedral ceilings. Remember heat rises and if it cannot escape, you will be feeling it....Luis

Luis nailed it. Better to get this fixed in the spring. I've had claims where roofs have literally started disintegrating from this and this type of damage is something that most insurance policies do not cover.

Bill Gulley

Real Estate Investor · Springfield, Missouri

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Dec 12 '10, 05:33 AM

Yep, what you said was there was no sofit vent before and sofit vents and the ridge ven was installed. I bet what they did was drilled holes in the sofit and covered the sofit with a new sofit covering that appears to be continuous, but isn't. The holes are insufficient or maybe not there at all. Maybe the roofer has a clue and welcomes the opportunity to correct it from his unknowing standpoint!

Joseph Ziolkowski

Inspector · Alsip, Illinois

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Dec 12 '10, 07:34 AM

That's some good thinking! I was stumped on this one, but I think it's because I assumed too much from the original post (i.e. that the soffit vents were actually continuous). That's why I love this site.

Tim W.

Real Estate Investor · Indiana, Indiana

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Dec 12 '10, 07:44 AM

Originally posted by Luis Leon

Originally posted by Terri Pour-Rastegar
To answer your questions . . .

Yes, this roof is just a shade darker than the old one. However, I've lived in homes with black roofing that did not have this problem.

Hello,
The color thing is a myth that's why you did not feel a difference with the black roof. Shingles are composed of ceramic granules which reflect the suns ultraviolet rays. The ceramic is dyed which is what gives you your roof color but reflects the same amount of rays in your roof is blue, black, or pink. You had ventilation in the past. Your roofer cancelled it and installed ridgevent incorrectly leaving you with a new hot roof. The box shows him how to install it. If it fell on his head maybe he could learn by osmosis....

Black shingles hide hail hits better. :wink: At least Midwest hail. Kevlar couldn't hide the cannonballs you guys get down there in Texas.