Attic ventilation doesn’t get much attention because you can’t see it from the street, but it has an outsized effect on how long your roof lasts and how much you spend heating and cooling your home.
In summer, a poorly ventilated attic traps heat, which can push temperatures well above outdoor levels and bake the underside of your shingles — accelerating wear from the inside out. In winter, trapped warm air can melt snow on the roof unevenly, which refreezes at the eaves and forms ice dams that push water back under your shingles.
Good ventilation is a balance of intake (usually soffit vents, low on the roof) and exhaust (ridge vents or other openings near the peak), letting air flow continuously through the attic space instead of stagnating. If your energy bills seem high for your home’s size, or you’ve noticed ice buildup at the roof edges in winter, ventilation is worth having someone evaluate — it’s often a straightforward fix with a real payoff.