Do you know Attic Rain? Every Alberta homeowner should know it.
This time, shall we talk about home repairs in Calgary? If you own a home in Alberta (especially a single-family home) without knowing what Attic Rain is, read this article to prepare for Attic Rain.
Especially if you recently moved to Alberta and purchased a home, you may not know about Attic Rain. Be sure to know this and refer to it later when you first buy a house.
hello. This is Mickey Hani.
The weather in Calgary has gotten very cold recently. Today it went down to -38 degrees.
When the weather gets cold like this, I go around the house and check to see if any windows are closed.
On cold days like this, the humidity in the house is kept lower than usual. The reason is Attic Rain. Normally, you need to maintain appropriate humidity to keep your home in a comfortable condition, but in very cold weather down to -25 degrees, maintaining low humidity prevents Attic Rain.
Attic Rain
Attic rain refers to a phenomenon in which humid and warm air (below -25 degrees Celsius) penetrates the inside of the roof and the frost continues to increase. When the weather suddenly warms, the ice accumulated in the roof melts all at once, causing water leaks to the ceiling. . Not only can water leak, but insulation can be damaged and mold can grow due to moisture.
It is said that this Attic Rain occurs mainly in recently built single houses. Due to the structure of recently built houses, air is prevented from escaping for insulation purposes, so warm air with moisture collects under the roof and freezes on very cold days. It is said that older houses have less airflow because they are not completely blocked.
I also lived in a single house for the first time, probably because it was an old house, so Attic Rain did not occur, so I lived in it for over 10 years without knowing about Attic Rain, but when I bought my second house (that house was built relatively recently), I learned about Attic Rain. It is done.
Causes of Attic Rain
There are three main causes:
Insufficient ventilation: One of the causes is insufficient ventilation in the space under the roof. The warm, moist air rising from the living space below should be discharged directly to the outside, but if the moist air is trapped, it condenses on cold surfaces and forms frost.
Insufficient Insulation: If your roof does not have sufficient insulation, it is easy for the space under the roof to reach freezing temperatures, which in turn makes it more prone to Attic Rain. However, when the temperature is around -30 degrees Celsius, it is not easy to prevent Attic Rain with even moderate insulation.
Air Leakage: In fact, the air in the living space should be discharged directly outside rather than inside the roof, but if there is a leak in the middle, the moist air in the living space seeps in and meets the cold roof, forming frost.
How to Avoid Attic Rain
So how can you avoid Attic Rain?
I looked through many articles, but they said there is no way to prevent frost if it has already formed under the roof in cold weather. So prevention is important.
The easiest way is to keep the humidity in your home low. Ultimately, Attic frost is caused by high-humidity air freezing, so if you keep the humidity high in your home, you’ll end up with more frost. They say that when the outside temperature falls below -20, it is recommended to keep the humidity as low as 20%.
Second, when taking a shower in the bathroom, you must turn on the exhaust fan before taking a shower. Even after showering, you must turn on the exhaust fan more to exhaust all remaining high-humidity air to the outside. Warm, high-humidity air rises upward, increasing the humidity in the space under the roof. In particular, high humidity air can easily rise to the ceiling around the exhaust fan, so you must always manage the humidity in the bathroom well.
These are two preventive measures that can be easily implemented. For other methods, you need to consult with an expert, so practice the above two methods carefully. After a very cold day, check if Attic Rain occurs around the vent or on the roof. If you see even mild damage, consult with an expert immediately before major damage occurs. Prepare in advance.
So stay warm at home in the cold weather and have a healthy winter!
ah! And this timer switch will help you.
Install it in the bathroom and have the exhaust fan run for a set period of time and then turn off. I also install it in my bathroom and it is very convenient.
And here are 7 tips to avoid the attic lane. There is more than the two simple things I am doing above.
This means that you should always turn on the fan when cooking to lower the humidity.
