- Mar 1, 2000
- 30,859
- 4,976
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Full disclosure:
I own a 70 year old, 2 story brick cape code in south eastern, WI.
The attic insulation is admittedly old, and needs to be replaced (time and money I do not currently have).
Most the windows on the house are original (single pane with 1970s storms)
In the summer, the 2nd story (bedrooms) simply do-not get the cooling they need. It's hot up there.
When we moved in, there was a power vent and the 2nd story seemed to be cooler. Admittedly, we have put an addition on since we moved in.
For the past couple of summers, that power vent has been broken -- first the motor died and last summer, the dome on it actually ripped off during a storm leaving a 15" diameter hole in my roof all night while it poured!
I was planning on replacing the power vent but have been doing some reading saying that they really don't work -- at least from a $ saving standpoint since they end up replacing the hot attic air with conditioned air from the house.
While I would love to save money, my initial hope is just to cool those bedrooms down. Will a power vent help with that?
Bonus question: what's the verdict on solar powered units? I'd rather not pay to have an electrician run the install (I can not do this myself for various reasons) and I figure the solar may save a few of the pennies I'm costing myself if these things do, in fact just suck your conditioned air out of the house.
Something like:
http://www.amazon.com/Broan-355BR-M...=1432667989&sr=8-11&keywords=power+roof+vents
Versus:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E382RJM...TF8&colid=3LJ2LRW5I1IMO&coliid=I3FSN7JWTU0SK7
Thanks in advance.
I own a 70 year old, 2 story brick cape code in south eastern, WI.
The attic insulation is admittedly old, and needs to be replaced (time and money I do not currently have).
Most the windows on the house are original (single pane with 1970s storms)
In the summer, the 2nd story (bedrooms) simply do-not get the cooling they need. It's hot up there.
When we moved in, there was a power vent and the 2nd story seemed to be cooler. Admittedly, we have put an addition on since we moved in.
For the past couple of summers, that power vent has been broken -- first the motor died and last summer, the dome on it actually ripped off during a storm leaving a 15" diameter hole in my roof all night while it poured!
I was planning on replacing the power vent but have been doing some reading saying that they really don't work -- at least from a $ saving standpoint since they end up replacing the hot attic air with conditioned air from the house.
While I would love to save money, my initial hope is just to cool those bedrooms down. Will a power vent help with that?
Bonus question: what's the verdict on solar powered units? I'd rather not pay to have an electrician run the install (I can not do this myself for various reasons) and I figure the solar may save a few of the pennies I'm costing myself if these things do, in fact just suck your conditioned air out of the house.
Something like:
http://www.amazon.com/Broan-355BR-M...=1432667989&sr=8-11&keywords=power+roof+vents
Versus:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E382RJM...TF8&colid=3LJ2LRW5I1IMO&coliid=I3FSN7JWTU0SK7
Thanks in advance.