# Roof Vent Question



## Guest (Feb 20, 2007)

I bought an old 1961 home with two turbine vents on the roof. They are rusty and need replacing for cosmetic reasons to say the least. Anyone know if Lowes or Home Depot can order these things or stock them. Are they hard to replace, and is messing with the roof shingles required. I was hoping to just replace the turbine top rather than the whole assembly attached under the shingles. Any suggestions. What would a roofer cost to do this...and would they want to mess with a small job. 

I also have an old oil heater chimney up there (about 3 feet high)made out of metal, simulated to look like brick. I wanted to cut it off some how and cap it for cosmetic reasons as the home is getting central a/c and heat. Thought I might have to rig up something to make the old chimney look like a roof vent. Any sugestions??


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## AtlanticWBConst. (May 12, 2006)

nailfun said:


> I bought an old 1961 home with two turbine vents on the roof. They are rusty and need replacing for cosmetic reasons to say the least. Anyone know if Lowes or Home Depot can order these things or stock them. Are they hard to replace, and is messing with the roof shingles required. I was hoping to just replace the turbine top rather than the whole assembly attached under the shingles. Any suggestions. What would a roofer cost to do this...and would they want to mess with a small job.
> 
> I also have an old oil heater chimney up there (about 3 feet high)made out of metal, simulated to look like brick. I wanted to cut it off some how and cap it for cosmetic reasons as the home is getting central a/c and heat. Thought I might have to rig up something to make the old chimney look like a roof vent. Any sugestions??


1.) Look into this with a contractor supply company like Harvey Industries or other similar type supplier in your area. They will have a MUCH larger selection of roof vents and parts...

2.) Roofer's cost = He'd probably charge one day's labor + materials if there are any materials. 
What do Roofers in your area charge as their daily rate? : I have NO idea. In addition, their prices will range differently...
What do we do, if we don't have the time, or just don't want to deal with it: We hire an experienced roofing laborer to do it on his day off of work = inexpensive charge.

3.) Chimney. If it is definitely non-functioning, I would just take it out, seal-up the hole (frame, plywood, & felt) and re-roof it....


-That's my 2 cents -


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## cibula11 (Jan 6, 2007)

Unless you are planning to reroof the house, adding better looking vents would not be a great idea. While there are ways to install them without making a complete mess of the existing roof, it is much easier to do it the right way when reroofing. Yes, you would have to "mess" with the shingles as many vents are shingles over to prevent water from running underneath. 

As far as the chimney goes, if its not being used, knock it down when you do put a new roof on. It just adds weight and is another hole in your roof that could leak in the future. 

An idea for your subpar looking vents. We always spray paint any pipes on the roof to match the color of roof. You just have to make sure you take a scrap shingle or something to protect the existing roof from overspray. Rustoleum works well.


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## Guest (Feb 20, 2007)

*roof vents*

its definetely out of the budget to do a complete reroof but it sounds nice. I do like the idea of Rustoleum on the existing vents. That at least would be inexpensive. This all came about cause the house across the street had new turbines put on, and the roof is 1000 years old. It looked nice seeing the new glavanized turbines blowing in the wind. The home is vacant so theres noone to ask about where to get them. Ill have to sneak over there and see if they replaced any shingles when they put the new turbines in. 
This home is a flip home for me and its not in the budget to reroof it right now. Thnaks for the advice everyone.


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## cibula11 (Jan 6, 2007)

Do the turbines work properly? Are they damaged at all or just discolored? If they work just fine, I would buy some silver semi gloss exterior (rustoleum) spray paint and just give them a good coat. From the ground they should look new and at worst they will look much better. 

FYI-My brother and I did a roof where only a couple of vents needed to be replaced. The problems was that they new ones did not match the old. We painted all of them black and you probably wouldn't know unless you were the type of person who likes to look at the vents on houses


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## Guest (Feb 22, 2007)

*cibula*

you make a lot of sense cibula. the vents rotate only in 15mph winds or more. they may need lubrication. ill find out when i get up there. they are really rusty which worried me just painting them. i got to have that NEW look. 

maybe i can sand some of the rust off and then paint. 

Thanks for your comments.


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## cibula11 (Jan 6, 2007)

Is the house a two story or one? If the turbines are high enough, chances are you won't see them from the ground anyway. 

I'm all about doing things right, but if they work, just paint. I'm not incredibly familiar with turbines and their functions, but don't see why painted wouldn't work. Good luck and let us know how it goes.


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## roofwiz74 (Feb 21, 2007)

yes you can replace just the top of the vent.If it's the 2 piece ones.I've changed quite a few of them.


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