How to Disable a Roof Vent to Conserve Heat

Roof vents allow hot air to escape from the top of your home, usually through the attic. Proper ventilation prevents mold and mildew from accumulating in the walls and crawl spaces of your home. Installing new vents can lead to over-circulation in the home, allowing weather to cool the crawl space and cool the home prematurely. Closing unneeded roof vents conserves the heat wanted in the home. Keep in mind that you need approximately 1 square foot of ventilation for every 300 square feet of attic space.

Ladder
Plywood
Nail gun
Nails

Instructions

- 1
  Calculate how much vent spacing is required to properly ventilate your home. If your attic is 20 feet by 20 feet, you need at least 2 square feet of ventilation.
- 2
  Determine which vents you will close. Ridge and soffit vents usually replace gable or turbine vents, though people don't always close these off when the new ones are installed. Ridge vents use the soffit vents under the roof overhang to draw in air to create an upward flow; gables inhibit this design. If you have ridge vents, close the gables.
- 3
  Close the vent lever if there is one. Use a ladder to access vent levers that are located on the interior or attic wall. Many vents have a louver mechanism that closes the vent easily. If there is no lever, you may need to cover the vent with plywood to prevent airflow from coming in through the vent. Use a nail gun to attach the plywood to the gable vent frame.
- 4
  Unplug any fan vents. Call an electrician if there is no on/off switch. You may need to pull the wiring. Install an on/off switch if you are going through this trouble so you always have the option to turn the vent on again.

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