Powered ridge ventilation system and method

Abstract

There is provided a ridge ventilation system that comprises a ridge slot disposed longitudinally in a ridge of a roof and a fan disposed in the ridge slot for actively exhausting air from an attic substantially enclosed by the roof, sidewalls and ceiling into the ambient atmosphere. There is further provided a method for ventilating that comprises disposing a ridge slot longitudinally in a ridge of the roof and operating a fan disposed in the ridge slot to actively exhaust air from the attic into the ambient atmosphere. Lastly, there is provided a method for installing the ridge ventilation system that comprises constructing a ridge slot longitudinally disposed in a ridge of the roof and disposing a fan in the ridge slot to actively exhaust air from the attic into the ambient atmosphere.

1 . A ridge ventilation system comprising: 
 a ridge slot disposed longitudinally in a ridge of a roof; and    a fan disposed in the ridge slot for actively exhausting air from an attic substantially enclosed by the roof, sidewalls and a ceiling into the ambient atmosphere.    
     
     
         2 . The ridge ventilation system according to  claim 1 , wherein the fan is a centrifugal fan disposed in the ridge slot longitudinally along the ridge of the roof.  
     
     
         3 . The ridge ventilation system according to  claim 1 , wherein the fan is an axial fan disposed in the ridge slot perpendicularly to the ridge of the roof.  
     
     
         4 . The ridge ventilation system according to  claim 1 , wherein the fan is connected to an electrical power source.  
     
     
         5 . The ridge ventilation system according to  claim 1 , wherein the fan is connected to a solar power source.  
     
     
         6 . The ridge ventilation system according to  claim 1 , wherein the switch is an automatic switch or a manual switch.  
     
     
         7 . The ridge ventilation system according to  claim 1 , further comprising a sensor enabled for signaling the fan when to start operating and when to stop operating.  
     
     
         8 . The ridge ventilation system according to  claim 7 , wherein the sensor is one selected from the group consisting of: a temperature sensor; a pressure sensor; a moisture sensor; and light sensor.  
     
     
         9 . The ridge ventilation system according to  claim 1 , further comprising a switch for signaling the fan when to start operating and when to stop operating.  
     
     
         10 . The ridge ventilation system according to  claim 1 , further comprising a fan housing for housing the fan in the ridge slot.  
     
     
         11 . The ridge ventilation system according to  claim 10 , further comprising a roof ridge vent disposed over the ridge slot and overlapping the roof adjacent to the ridge slot.  
     
     
         12 . The ridge ventilation system according to  claim 11 , wherein the fan is disposed in the ridge slot from about one inch to about twelve inches below the roof ridge vent.  
     
     
         13 . The ridge ventilation system according to  claim 11 , wherein the roof ridge vent comprises a plurality of vent slots for actively exhausting the air from the attic.  
     
     
         14 . The ridge ventilation system according to  claim 11 , wherein the roof ridge vent comprises a plurality of external baffles for controlling flow of precipitation incident on the roof ridge vent.  
     
     
         15 . The ridge ventilation system according to  claim 11 , wherein the roof ridge vent comprises a plurality of internal baffles for controlling flow of precipitation incident on the roof ridge vent.  
     
     
         16 . The ridge ventilation system according to  claim 10 , further comprising an inlet fan guard disposed on the fan housing.  
     
     
         17 . A method for ventilating an attic substantially enclosed by a roof, sidewalls and a ceiling, the method comprising: 
 disposing a ridge slot longitudinally in a ridge of the roof; and    operating a fan disposed in the ridge slot to actively exhaust air from the attic into the ambient atmosphere.    
     
     
         18 . The method for ventilating according to  claim 17 , further signaling the fan when to start operating and when to stop operating.  
     
     
         19 . A method for installing a ridge ventilation system for ventilating an attic substantially enclosed by a roof, sidewalls and a ceiling, the method comprising: 
 constructing a ridge slot longitudinally disposed in a ridge of the roof; and    disposing a fan in the ridge slot to actively exhaust air from the attic into the ambient atmosphere.    
     
     
         20 . The method for installing a ridge ventilation system according to  claim 19 , further comprising securing a roof ridge vent over the ridge slot and overlapping portions of the roof adjacent to the ridge slot.