Canadian companies study solar powered attic vents

Power Stream, Orangeville Hydro, Collus Power, Wasanga Beach Distribution, and St. Thomas Energy are joining forces with Green Leaf Distribution and International Solar Solutions (ISSI) to study temperature differences in homes with solar attic vents in Ontario, Canada.

The data will be collected and analyzed by students at Georgian College who study environmental sciences or sustainable energy. Students will have the opportunity to create further research programs to study the expected and incidental benefits of the solar attic vents.

The vents are intended to reduce mold growth by increasing air flow in attics, lengthen the expected life span of roofing materials, and, most importantly, reduce electricity consumption by using solar power to regulate temperature instead of using the conventionally powered air conditioning unit.

Solar attic vents are composed of a vent and fan, both powered by solar energy. The vent and fan work together to circulate hot air out of the attic, which is supposed to reduce the temperature of the house without using electricity from conventional sources, and keep humidity at a level that is not conducive to mold growth.

President and CEO of Collus Power, Ed Houghton said that each vent “operates off-grid and is completely powered by the sun.”

According to Tom Bushey, the CEO of ISSI, the attic vents benefit homeowners in a couple ways.

"Everybody's trying to save a dollar, so you can save on the electrical bill, you can hopefully save your roof, and you can save installation costs by putting it in yourself," he said.

Bushey estimates that the vent could be installed in ten minutes or less by anyone who can handle a screwdriver and isn’t afraid of heights.

The initial data collection will happen with homes in Ontario, and then houses in Collingwood, Wasaga Beach, and Alliston will be incorporated. The attic vents are supplied by ISSI, and other funding has been provided in the form of a grant by Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada.

Additionally, ISSI and Green Leaf have pledged to provide funding to the project on an “as needed” basis in order to insure that Georgian College can perform the study with cutting edge techniques and technology.