I have a ranch home with no air conditioning. It also has a sloped
ceiling which is quite high.  On summer days the heat build-up in the
house is prodigeous.  I have tried every kind of window and floor fan
to remove the heat to no avail.  I have wondered about roof vents or
skylights or anything else you can recommend.  I don't want cental
air.

Hello, fogger1-ga!


 Your problem is very easy to remedy! For an answer, I went to my
contractor husband, who is very familiar with what he calls "poor
man's air conditioning." He is a general contractor with extensive
remodeling experience, so you can be sure he knows what he is talking
about!


 According to him:


 What you need is an attic or roof fan (not a window of floor fan!)
The fan may be installed in the ceiling or sloped roof, depending upon
your application. For instance, if you have a sloped ceiling
throughout your entire house, pick a central location and have a 
"whole-house" roof fan installed.


 You can install this yourself if you are very experienced in roof
framing and basic electrical skills. Because this fan is installed
directly on your roof, you will have to properly flash the whole-house
fan to prevent roof leaks. If you want to hire someone to do it, you
should hire a Heating and Air Conditioning company to complete the
installation. They should be able to subcontract with an electrician
and roofer to complete the task, or will have their own skilled
laborers within the company.


 If you do not want to install the fan through the roof, you can
select a location on a gable wall closest to the ridge. If you do
this, you may need to have fans in more than one location. These fans
work extremely well as they pull in air from the outside and exhaust
the hot air that collects in the house.


 Home Depot may have the fans as well as remodeling contractors that
can perform the installation.


 An online source for the whole-house fans is Grainger at:
http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/wwg/homepage.jsp


 Type "whole house fan" into the product search box, and it will bring
up a page of specific products. However, you will need to consult with
customer service to make sure you get a fan that is applicable to your
needs.


 If you don't want to be bothered with ordering yourself, it is
simpler to just go through a Heating and Air conditioning contractor.
You can expect to spend $300-400 just for the fan alone. Labor costs
will be according to your locality.


 Roof vents are designed to ventilate the roof system above the
insulation - not to ventilate a house. Therefore, they would have a
minimal effect on the interior home temperature.

 Good luck! If you have any additional questions, don't hesitate to
ask. However, I will be away for a week, so you will need to ask
within the next 24 hours, unless you can wait until next weekend!

 umiat-ga

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Request for Answer Clarification by fogger1-ga on 06 Apr 2003 07:40 PDT

Hi umiat-ga

If you could provide two claifications/opinions it would be helpful
and I'm done.

Can these fans be cosmetically pleasing?  It would probably be located
over the main portion of the living area and very visible.

My roof is has too shallow a slope for asphalt shingles and basically
has a one piece rubberized material (black which I'm sure doesn't
help).  Do I risk creating leaks if I cut into this stuff>

thanks

Fogger1-ga

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Request for Answer Clarification by fogger1-ga on 06 Apr 2003 08:28 PDT

I promise, last clarification.  Arn't whole house fans noisy and
subject to leaking heat in the winter?

---

Clarification of Answer by umiat-ga on 06 Apr 2003 15:37 PDT

Hi, fogger!

 As guoted from my husband:

 The only thing that would be exposed to the inside of the room would
be the louvres. If you have a wood ceiling, you could build a
decorative grid or gill that could match your wood and make the fan
look more "integrated" with the rest of the  ceiling.

 If you don't have a wood ceiling, you can paint the louvres or have a
painted grill to match the ceiling color.

 Yes, whole-house fans are somewhat noisy. We found, through our own
use, that the breeze was worth the noise. We often ran ours mostly at
night when the air was cooler outside. However, it is a trade-off. You
will have to determine whether a bit of noise is worth a cooler house!

 Also, it was a routine for us to close all the windows and blinds
first thing in the morning and keep them closed all day in order to
trap the cool evening air. By evening, it was definitely time to turn
on the fan to complete the cycle!!!

 I am not sure what you are calling a "rubberized" material on your
roof. It might be a hot-mop roof or a membrane roof. I would suggest
that you consult a commercial roofing contractor (not a residential
roofer) as this type of roof is generally done by commercial
contractors.(Or make sure the Heating and Air conditioning company
uses a commercial roofer familiar with that type of application, if
you go that route.)
A curb will need to be constructed on your roof so that your roofing
can be properly flashed to the whole house fan. A curb is a framework
that elevates the whole house fan off the plane of the roof. If you
don't get any snow in your area, the curb doesn't have to be very
tall.

 The fan can be winterized by installing foam or insulation behind the
louvres during the winter when you don't use the fan.

 If you are still confused, or have further questions, I will be home
until 6:30am Rocky mountain time tomorrow.......and then home again
Friday night. Don't hesitate to ask further if your need to!

umiat

There are new whole house fans on the market that are very quiet and
efficient.  Try doing a search on google for "quiet cool"