Why do we sizzle in summer? After the sun goes down and the outside air has cooled down, we have opened all the windows to allow for effective cross flow ventilation why do we continue to sweat through the night unable to get a good nights sleep?
Well I can easily answer that – just imagine all day long the summer heat has been beating down on your roof, it may be tiled or it may be colorbond. Well for example if it is tiled with concrete tiles you are going to absorb awesome amounts of excessive heat rays and this heat without an effective roof ventilation system will build up in the roofspace and can exceed 70°Celcius. Not only that the concrete tiles will emanate this heat into the roofspace for hours into the night. Ceiling insulation can only maintain a certain amount of protection from the onslaught of thermal rays, then the heat is allowed to radiate into the living areas of the home, this is why you cannot sleep. It is the same for terracotta tiles and can even be worse for a colorbond roof without a thermal barrier, example – a colorbond roof without sisalation foil or a blanket foil combo has zero protection and you are really going to sizzle.
SO WHAT ARE YOU TO DO – YOU NEED AN EFFECTIVE ROOF VENTILATION SYSTEM
Which would have inlets and outlets within the roof covering, this will allow the ambient air to circulate the roofspace eliminating the excessive heat buildup within the roofspace, makes sense doesn’t it! By continually allowing the ambient temperature to circulate the roofspace 24/7 you are not allowing the excessive heat to build up and you will sleep very well through the night during the summer months.
If you are considering a new home I would suggest if you use colorbond roofing – use a blanket foil combo under the roof sheet as well as ceiling insulation with an effective roof ventilation system.
If you use either terracotta or concrete roof tiles, you would not need a vapour barrier however ceiling insulation at least 3.5 or R4 roof batts and an effective roofspace ventilation system will help you beat the summer sizzle. The cost of an effective roofspace ventilation system will pay you back for decades, in summer comfort and savings on energy costs for air conditioning.
With an effective roof ventilation system you won’t be using your air conditioning so much you will find you are using it very infrequently compared to when you didn’t have an effective roof ventilation system.
However air con or no air con with an effective roof ventilation system prepare to sleep through the summer sizzle.