attic with felt covering holes

[Mrxman]

Hi There

We just moved into a 1920s house with redland roof tiles. In the attic there were some holes in the bitumen felt covering which I patched up.

I've since been wondering whether the holes could have been put there deliberately for ventilation given there's an open cold water tank (soon to be replaced with lid). There's also an old window btw.

Any thoughts on this? Should an attic be ventilated. Seems a bit weird cutting holes deliberately

 

[noseall]

Hi There

We just moved into a 1920s house with redland roof tiles. In the attic there were some holes in the bitumen felt covering which I patched up.

I've since been wondering whether the holes could have been put there deliberately for ventilation given there's an open cold water tank (soon to be replaced with lid). There's also an old window btw.

Any thoughts on this? Should an attic be ventilated. Seems a bit weird cutting holes deliberately

A loft should be ventilated - yes, but not to the detriment of the roof membrane. There are proprietary retro-fit gadgets that can fit into the felt laps, that help introduce airflow into a loft space, when dealing with the old fashioned bitumastic membrane. But just some random holes in the felt is not the way, no.

 

[Mrxman]

A loft should be ventilated - yes, but not to the detriment of the roof membrane. There are proprietary retro-fit gadgets that can fit into the felt laps, that help introduce airflow into a loft space, when dealing with the old fashioned bitumastic membrane. But just some random holes in the felt is not the way, no.

Ok, thanks for the info, that's really useful. I may buy these once I've insulated loft a bit better