The Importance
of Baffles
To the Editor:
Concerning the letter titled
"Leaky Ridge Vents" (7/90) and the
subsequent response, you were correct
in stating that "vertical baffles
below vent openings…deflect windblown
snow and rain upward past
the vent." However, most in the
building industry are not aware that
this beneficial action has been documented
through independent
research and testing.
As early as 1960, Herb Hinrichs,
one of the country's leading ventilation
experts, was conducting infiltration
research for HC Products
Co., a ridge vent manufacturer in
Princeville, Ill. At about the same
time, the Small Homes Council at
the University of Illinois conducted
tests on a full-size home. Both studies
drew the same conclusions: an
external wind baffle is needed to
prevent infiltration.
In 1987, Construction Research
Laboratories