Causes Of Frost In Attic

When warm air from inside the house escapes traveling up through the bypasses the moisture condenses on the roof boards and rafters where the frost can form.

Causes of frost in attic.

What you re looking at is evidence of excessive moisture in your house. The humid air in your home rises to the top of your home the attic when the temperature gets too low. Can i cure it. When the moisture gets into the attic it condenses on the roof.

The attic is meant to be a cool space in the winter. Frost accumulates in attics when moisture laden air from the house gets up there when it s cold. Why is there ice in my roof. Last winter i noticed condensation and water droplets on the nails that stick through the roof into the attic.

Water vapor is migrating upward and eventually filtering into the attic. My wife ali and i bought an old house 18 months ago. While seemingly relatively small air leaks may not seem to be important these can add up to a lot of frost accumulation in the attic. Heat loss is when warm air and the moisture that joins it from the conditioned living space moves into the attic.

Frost forms in the attic for one reason heat loss. It is caused by warm moist air coming into contact with cold surfaces and dropping its moisture. Click the following link for an excellent guide to attic air sealing. What causes this frost.

It is a serious problem because the frost turns into water as it dries out and this water will then leak into the home rot out the roof and joists and cause mold to. The best way to prevent frost from accumulating in an attic is to seal off attic air leaks. Will it cause any harm. Remember that polar vortex we had not too long ago where we had 70 degree temperature swings in about 48 hours.

In one house frost accumulations of up to fifteen hundred pounds were discovered one cold february warm air rising in the house pushes moisture up through cracks in the ceiling. Frost in the attic is no different than anywhere else. This is bad for several reasons. What causes frost in your attic.

That s about it pretty simple. This frost is the result of warm air rising from the living areas underneath. The problem in attics is primarily one of quantity. Without proper attic ventilation in your home you could have a considerable amount of frost accumulate in your attic during the cold winter months.

When a warm sunny day arrives after a long cold stretch and it seems like you have a roof leak when there isn t a cloud in the sky it s probably attic icing otherwise known as ice dams or ice damming and the surprising thing is that it s very unlikely that the roof covering itself is the problem. Boxes stored in the attic were sometimes wet. At times there was ice and frost on the nails. When it reaches the cold surface of the roof sheathing and framing it turns to frost.

During winter conditions attic frost is a problem associated with attic bypasses. Ice frost and water in an attic condensation new construction text.