My house has soffit vent along the eaves of the roof. I am finishing up the attic to create a home office, and I am wondering how should I treat the vents… clearly they are not going to have access to the attic, which is going to have AC.
The soffit vents are all around, like this model here:
We are in New England, where the winters are brutal. Ice dam formation on the roof is a real issue, and so the vents are connected to these rafter vent baffles to make the temperature of the edge of the roof uniform (if the edges heat up, the snow melts and forms ice, leading to a dam).
The area where the baffles are is going to be enclosed behind drywall, I do not have to remove them for aesthetic reasons. I am thinking of closing the top edge with staples, backing them with insulation, and let them do their thing in this closed space.
Any suggestions? Am I doing the right thing, or should I remove the baffles?
Best Answer
Those baffles can't "do their thing" if you close one end. You need a complete ventilation circuit between the soffit and the ridge to prevent extreme temperatures on your roof deck and heat migrating into your living space, followed by ice dams in winter.
You need to maintain ventilation against the roof sheathing the entire way up, otherwise you'll build what's known as a "hot roof". That has significant drawbacks and implications for energy efficiency and moisture management. Here's what it'll look like:
source
Be sure you have a good understanding of why this is important and how to accomplish it before you proceed.