We have a home with vaulted ceilings but there is no attic. The roof was replaced in 2004 & we bought the house in 2007. In the spring the peak of the ceiling gets a lot of condensation. So it drips onto the floors of the rooms upstairs. We have ceiling fans in two of these rooms (bedrooms) so I reverse the fans to blow the air up so it cools the ceiling. My thinking is that the air is hot at the peak so the ceiling fan blows cooler air up. But this does not solve the problem in the stair well or the bathrooms. The ceiling is all tongue & groove wood so I am afraid of rot. All the rooms have windows except the stair well. Hope you can help. Thanks.

Moisture usually indicates an insulation problem.

How well insulated is the roof? If the T&G is cold, the moisture will condense from air in the house, and then drip back down.

A heated roof line and a cold interior.

Think of a glass of ice water in the summertime.The condensation forms why?Because the colder ice draws the moisture to the glass sides.

The roof EXTERIOR is hot,but the INTERIOR is what we call superheated.The heat produced by the trapping of the sun's heat makes for a super hot interior.Making the cold air blow against this extra hot ceiling only draws the moisture TO the hot.

A vaulted ceiling doesn't mean the peak is closed off.

Is there a small area above the ceiling top and the peak?(Naturally there has to be,the span of the joists)

In the space available for ventilation did the previous owners close off this space?Perhaps.

If a roof can not breath,even a vaulted ceiling will have condensation.

You can look under the shingles to see if the space is closed off.If there is insulation tight to the roof sheeting it will need removed.There has to be positive airflow.Not only for the condensation factor but for the shingles.

In the end,the roof peak should have a ridge vent system installed,soffit vents placed(as gable venting just doesn't allow for enough positive airflow and cause the shingles to fail sooner than later)

Hope this cleared things up some:)

KBC