dead ends in attic ventilation channels- close off and stuff them, drill side vents to next rafter? – GreenBuildingAdvisor

Hi,

I’m  pretty new to home owning, and VERY new to fixing and building stuff, and I LOVE this GBA site as a learning resource since I discovered it recently.Most  of  the contractors and trades I have asked about stuff or done work for me usually just give me a “it doesn’t really matter” type of answer, and it’s been great to get some better information and perspective from GBA columns and. QandA .

We bought a 1965 cottage a few years ago in Nashville ( zone4 I think?) — it’s  basically a cape cod I think  … (steep roof , attic with dormers and 4 ft knee walls) After we had owned the   a house  for a couple years,  last year the attic ceiling paneling started to warp and sag ….Long story short , I had to gut the attic completely and get a new roof ,complete with entirely new roof deck,EVERYTHING was rotten- roof deck and insulation full ofwater and mold, It turned out there was basically no ventilation … soffit had no vents at all , and ridge vent had been stuffed with insulation and gable vents completely closed off behind more cheap paneling,…. it is clean now, new roof , and I am putting it back together with proper ventilation. No knee walls going back in, it’s going to be all conditioned space cathedral ceiling.

I have  installed overlapping Provent  chutes from  peak to soffit in all the rafter bays, and furred out the 2×6 rafters with 2×2 pine to make room for R-23 5.5′ Rockwool -next , thanks to knowledge acquired here on  this site, I’ll try to figure out a DIY air seal and wind block  at top plate.

My question  today though has to do with the space from soffit that dead ends into dormer window with no escape route to ridge vent, and then of course the space where the dormer stops and roof line resumes …. which leads to the ridge vent, but has no air intake from soffit of course.

I confirmed my concernthat these create an obvious ventilation problem reading some cathedral ceiling info from Martin H. in various places on this site , but if there was a clear solution in there somewhere I think I missed it ….

I realize the answers for the two spaces may be. different, but it seems like the only options. I can think of are :

1-seal off the rafter bays below the dormer windows and fill entirely with every ounce of  R value I can pack in there and try to make it airtight?

2– drill a bunch of holes in the rafters below dormer window and try  “MacGyver” some airflow from soffit vent out into  the adjacent rafters that DO  flow to the ridge?

Then … above the dormers …. 

1-drill MORE holes to let air IN from adjacent rafters,? 

OR

2-stuff full of insulation and seal?

3- allow an air channel  with provent chutethat starts from  a dead end to terminate at open ridge vent?(possibly to let any moisture get out the top?)

I’m going to attach pictures of both spaces …and if it means anything-any good answer doesn’t have to be fast Or easy…. I’m not a builder or a flipper,this is just for my own house and it only has to happen once.If it takes 2 days to work it out , I have the time!

Thanks in advance for any help or ideas!

-bob