Winterize your home by putting a cover over your turbine roof vent, or whirlybird vent. See how to make your own roof vent cover with an easy-to-follow tutorial.
Our attic gets really hot in the summer. So to keep the attic, and the whole house, cooler in those warm months, we added a turbine roof vent to our roof. (It’s also called a whirlybird.) It works wonderfully in the summer. Whenever the attic is warmer than the outside air, the turbine will spin and force air from inside the attic up and out through the air vent, keeping the temperature in the attic lower. 
Unfortunately, in the winter it also forces the warm air out of the attic. That’s not good when it’s cold and we’re trying to stay warm. A simple cover prevents the air from flowing through the vent. And when the air stops flowing, the turbine also stops spinning, and the warm air stays inside the attic. You can purchase a Turbine Vent Cover from Amazon or you can follow along with the video and make your own.
How to Make a Whirlybird Cover
We used outdoor fabric to make the roof vent cover so that it would withstand the sun’s rays and last longer. It’s also important to use a fabric that breaths, instead of one with a plastic coating, so that moisture in the attic air can escape and not cause mold or other problems. We also chose a color that matched the roof so it would blend in.
Now our turbine roof vent is covered for the winter and the warm air stays inside our attic. When the weather starts to warm up, we can easily remove the cover and let the warm air out to keep our home cooler in the summer.
Roof Vent Cover Supplies
- Flexible Measuring Tape, like a sewing measuring tape
- Outdoor Fabric (We used a little less than a yard)
- Thread
- Cord for the tie-down string