Have you ever been sitting in traffic behind a work van and noticed a small black box, dome, or mushroom-shaped thing sticking out of the roof?
Maybe you’ve seen one on a plumber’s van, a delivery vehicle, a contractor’s truck, or an old utility van.
At first glance, it looks like some sort of antenna.
But then you notice there are no wires.
No obvious controls.
No flashing lights.
And definitely no giant explanation telling you what it is.
So what is that little black thing?
It’s usually a roof ventilator.
And here’s the clever part: many of these vents don’t need a motor, a battery, or even an electrical connection to do their job.
They use airflow.
When the van is moving, air passing over the ventilator helps draw hot, stale air out of the cargo area. When the van is parked, wind moving across the roof can continue
