How To Unfreeze An Outside Air Vent Roof

Clear your roof of snow on a regular basis.

How to unfreeze an outside air vent roof.

As we know from basic physics nature abhors a vacuum so the air supply for the vacuum in the sump had to come from somewhere else. Turbine vents are those ubiquitous devices found on almost every residential rooftop. Designed to maintain steady ventilation to attics these devices are necessary to prevent mold and excessive heat buildup under the roof. The water would then run back down and drip out of the exhaust fan onto your head.

A gurgling toilet may indicate a clogged or frozen vent stack. Terminating these pipes above the roof ensures any vapours that potentially come up through the drains from the sewer will harmlessly be released outside rather than penetrate our indoor air. Now i loop a 2 ft pipe heating cable about 8 10 inches into the vent and tape the rest of it to the outside of the vent i do this in late fall before it gets cold and icy on the roof. There may be a clog in the sewer line right where it meets the vent pipe.

I also used to climb up on the roof and thaw the vent with hot water. This blockage keeps air from traveling up the vent pipe properly. The pipe in the attic is already insulated now it was time to do something on the exterior as well. But now the roof vent was frozen and could not supply the air needed to eliminate the vacuum in the sump.

Under normal operation the air to relieve that vacuum would come from air flowing down through the roof vent. The hot moist air would travel up the vent hose towards the roof and condense in the cold attic. After i had access i ran the vent hose under the attic insulation and installed a vent in the. Here is the update video on this pipe https www youtub.

Over time these vents can become squeaky from moisture and age related natural degradation. Plus in the cord on ground level for a few hours. To provide both of these functions terminating the drain vent high up above the roof is necessary. Firstly the pipe freezes at the roof outlet due to condensation of the warm gases as they reach the cold outside air condensation continues until the pipe finally freezes right over.

And when the need arises. Excessive snow on the roof can block the vent s stack and cause freezing.