Finished Attic Is Very Hot

Converting your attic into usable finished space can increase the value of your home by maximizing the available square footage.

Finished attic is very hot.

The attic is a huge determinant in keeping your entire home cool so the first place to start cooling your home should be the attic. Alternatively install passive vents such as gable soffit and ridge vents which are openings in the roof that allow hot air to escape. Flooring ceiling and wall materials and other elements will reduce headroom and floor space and it s the finished area that matters. I have large attic with ridge vents and screened vents at either end of the attic to maintain air flow.

Install electric ventilators and attic fans which remove hot air from an attic. I live in northern virginia hot humid climate in the summer and use heat pumps to heat and cool my house throughout the year. Since parts of a finished attic are usually very close to the roof. If you re storing electronics in your attic you might be unpleasantly surprised to find them less than functional in the future.

Not the overabundance but the lack of insulation in the attic. According to agricultural engineer b r. If your home is smaller than other homes in your area or simply lacks the necessary amount of storage or living space for your family finishing your attic is a relatively inexpensive way to increase your usable space. A contractor or a local building.

Follow the rule of 7s. Attic spaces are typically very hot in the summer and very cold through the winter. The previous owner did a poor job of insulating when he finished the attic this. I recently moved into a 1922 2 1 2 story colonial in baltimore md hot humid summers and fairly cold winters.

The basic space requirements for a finished attic boil down to the sizes of the finished rooms. They have thermostats that turn the fan on at a recommended preset temperature of 100 110 degrees. Stewart attics without air conditioning can reach up to 160 degrees fahrenheit on a hot day and that s way too hot for your electronics to survive apple recommends using their computers at between 50 and 95. Without properly insulating your finished attic room will also be cold in the winter.

Enforcement varies but codes typically say that at least half of a finished attic must be at least 7 feet high and that this area must be a minimum of 7 feet wide and 70 square feet. My idea is to vent the build up of hot air that has risen to the ceiling in the hotspot rooms into the attic so that air from cooler parts of the house can move in. Within the attic insulation is a must. Low cfm similar to a bathroom vent 300cfm and only in the hot spots basically by adding an inline ducting fan to the return ducts for the hotspot rooms.

Without properly ventilating the roof your finished space can be just as unpleasant as an unfinished attic. Finished is important to remember when you re measuring an empty attic space.