Can inclement weather restrict installing different types of gable vents for certain times of year?

https://www.onyxxteriors.com/QA/Can-inclement-weather-restrict-installing-different-types-of-gable-vents-for-certain-times-of-the-year.php

Year long as the weather changes, different product materials such as plastic or vinyl, wood and metals can behave differently for installing outside a home.

Can a vinyl vent be installed in the heat of summer? It can but vinyl and plastic vents have an elasticity issue as it gets hotter and will reach a certain temperature that they actually become pliable. If the install must be done in the middle of summer, it's suggested to do this early in the morning. The plastic material will be the coolest and stiffest at this point. The main issues that make the hotter installs troublesome are the vent itself being stretched while applying fasteners and also the snap ring being too malleable to holds its shape well enough to snap on and stay on. The slightest deformity of this ring can prevent the ring from being tight enough to lock properly. Later that day or even a day or two later, the snap ring may be found on the ground under the vent.

Is there any issues with vinyl gable vents being installed in the winter? Winter cold is actually the worst time to work with anything vinyl. The lower temperatures will do the opposite as heat. The plastic will harden to the point of being brittle. Using nails to fasten it to the wall and one wrong swing of the hammer can shatter the vent. Using a staple gun is definitely out as it will crack through the vent nail fin. Screwing is a bit safer, but use caution to not over tighten. This too can crack or damage the nail fin which is also the water flange on the vent. Last is the snap ring that has, by now, frozen to the point that it has to be applied very slowly and only one click at a time. Tapping into place may even snap the snap ring. Slow and steady may pay off in this instance.

Should wooden gable vents be installed in the winter? Wood gable vents are usually good for installing all year around. Just make sure the vent sits outside near the gable wall it's being installed in for more than 4 hours. Wood requires an acclimation period to reach a similar temperature as the surrounding wood it will be attached to to prevent excessive expansion and contraction from one or the other. If the wall is too hot and a cool wood vent is installed, the wall is expanded and the vent is not. This can cause fasteners to be pushed out slightly loosening the vent from the wall. If the wall is cool and the vent is hot and expanded, the fasteners will pull inwards and can cause the wood of the vent to crack with the fasteners now being too tight. In the winter, wood vents cannot be wet during install since they absorb and hold water. This cold water inside the wood can freeze even if the vent doesn't show it. Once a fastener is driven through a frozen piece of wood, it can crack under the pressure. This may not show up till spring when the vent starts drying in the sun.

What weather is best to install a metal gable vent? Metal vents are applicable all year long. The only real consideration is what material the gable wall is clad in. Brick is not affected by the changing of the seasons. Stucco is another material that can be worked on all year. Vinyl and wood exteriors do expand and contract with heat and cold and can be difficult in the winter. Steel buildings as well as aluminum siding has such a low expansion and contraction rate, they too are easy to work with in any weather. And even though these metal gable vents are so versatile, it's still suggested to not install on the hottest summer day after lunch. Or, if preferred, install between 3 pm and 5 pm if you enjoy the feeling of being sweat drenched and slapped in the face by the sauna heat being pumped out of the vent opening. And gasping for a cool breath of fresh air as you stretch and wiggle on the top of the ladder as that one single bead of sweat races down your spine and aiming for the crevasse below to make you dance on top of the ladder like a pro.