Properly Placed Animal-Proof Roof Vent Screens
Plastic roof vents are an open invitation to wildlife wanting to live in a warm attic. The soft plastic lid is easily removed by raccoons and chewed through by squirrels.
Roof vents need to be screen in such a was as to keep animals from having access to the vent itself. This generally involves placing a screen box over the entire vent.
Some companies will place a screen underneath the roof vent but as you can see in this picture, the lid can still be manipulated from the outside leaving a large opening to the attic exposed. Even though the screen will stop the animals from entering the attic space, it does not prevent them from using the screen as a support for their nest.
This will still cause many problems for the homeowner:
It is very likely that the homeowner would still hear the animals even though they are not inside the attic space.
The nest that has been built on top of the screen is preventing the roof vent from doing its intended job, which is to ventilate and let hot air out of attic. Proper ventilation will extend the life of your roof, reduce energy costs and reduce indoor temperature extremes
Snow and water will enter the attic through the compromised vent and cause water damage and mould.
This picture shows a squirrel nest that was found underneath the lid of the roof vent.
