Ventilation Louvres

Has anyone installed Gable Vents?

I have an old house that has no ventilation. I was told by a contractor the easiest way to add ventilation was to put gable vents on each end of my house. I have no soffits btw, and my attic is a finished room... but there is attic space above and on either side of this room... and I have aluminum siding. Has anyone ever DIY'd this? Soffit vents would be wonderful if I had soffits to put them in. Roof meets exterior wall with no overhang. I need intake and exhaust. I would much rather have ridge vents but then I would still need to create sources for intake. There's really no other option unless it is possible to to bring fresh air in from a lower point on the roof somehow. Otherwise I don't think there is any other choice but to cut out places for the gable vents.

Public Comments

1. you can go to Diytv.com and find out how to install the gable vent for aluminum siding . It's pretty simple to me because i've done it but it's best if you see the video on installing gable vents .Lowes.com has helpful stuff as well . Good luck
2. home depot or get a new roof with ridge vents thats pulls air
3. depending on the brand of your aluminum siding, they make siding with panels with vents built into them. also, the style of it, and color, they might have to be painted to match. or you could remove a few of the top rows of siding, cut out an opening in the peak of your gable, and install a square or triangle shaped vent. then cut the siding to fit back around it if needed, the tri type would be the finished top of your wall. personally, i would suggest that you have a roofer cut a ridge vent into your roof, then either go with a metal vent, or match the shingles as close as he can and cover the fiber type vent. any work done to your old siding would make it look different, since it likely has oxidation and chalking on it, unless you plan to paint the house soon. good luck, hope this helps you decide which option will work best for you.
4. don't waste your money install soffit vents every 2' , &/or continuous soffit screen, & combination with 1 whirlibird for every 300 sq ft ( including attached garage - best/most effective combination for the money
5. The simplest and most economical way to do that is to use gable triangular vents. They come in all roof pitches, but you have to go to a vinyl siding supply house. Naturally, you have to remove the appropriate amount of siding, but since the vent matches the roof pitch, you only need to replace the bottom most piece of siding. To order the vent, you only need to know the roof pitch and height you want.