Ventilation Question

[northernsong]

I am looking to buy a house and have a question requiring ventilation. The roof is slate. The attic has been converted into living space so there are crawl spaces on either side that are accessible and space at the peak of the roof that is not accessible. None of these spaces are vented. My home inspector suggested that the peak space be vented. The seller says that his roofer thinks that ventilation is unnecessary. I'm actually calling the roofer today to discuss his reasoning. The thing is, I know nothing about any of this, so it may be difficult for me to make heads or tails of what he tells me. Any thoughts?

[jmorgan1]

If the conversion is old and it has not sweated, it probably won't. I doubt that there is any room in the rafter spaces for ventillation (packed w/insulation). If the ceiling insulation was raw batts w/visqueen over it, this visqueen is a pretty good vapor barrier, better than the foil or paper faced batts. Keep sources of humidity out of this room. Probably can't ventillate this area without adding taller rafters and new roof deck, very expensive.
Jim

[Ed Imeduc]

Any attic space calls for 1 sq ft per 150 sqft of attic. If the roof is gable you could cut some vents in each end there.

ED ;)

[northernsong]

Thanks for the advice.