How To Deal With Ice Dams On Roof

Heat loss from a house snow cover and outside temperatures interact to form ice dams.

How to deal with ice dams on roof.

Severe ice dams can weigh many hundreds of pounds compromising the structure of the roof eaves. If dealing with ice dams is put off melted water backs up behind the ice wall and since it has nowhere to go and the heat of the roof over the home stays warm. The water trickles down between the layer of snow and the shingles until it reaches the eave of the roof which stays cold because it extends beyond the side of the house. It s important to deal with ice dams as soon as they appear.

Ice dams are formed when ice and snow continuously thaws and refreezes on your roof. An ice dam forms when the roof over the attic gets warm enough to melt the bottom layer of snow. The best way to do this is to pour the calcium chloride vertically along the length of the dam. A little bit of preventative maintenance can go a long way in keeping ice dams from ever forming.

Go to your roof and push the ice dam off of your roof. For ice dams to form there must be snow on the roof and at the same time higher portions of the roof s outside surface must be above 32 degrees f freezing while lower surfaces are below 32f. Don t wait until water leaks into your home causing structural damage. Use a roof rake.

An ice dam forms when the roof over the attic gets warm enough to melt the underside of the layer of snow on the roof. Ice dam roof damage occurs when an ice dam is allowed to grow and is not kept in check. The best way to prevent an ice dam is simply to remove the snow from your roof before it has a chance to melt and refreeze. Ice dams can be frustrating.

This is caused by heat escaping through the roof which in turn is caused by poor insulation. The snow melts into water and t. Warm air that escapes through a poorly insulated attic can cause ice and snow on the roof to melt away. Otherwise they can cause a lot of damage to your roof.

If ignored ice dams can cause serious damage to your roof gutters paint insulation and interior drywall and. Buy some calcium chloride and use it to melt the ice. Nonuniform roof surface temperatures lead to ice dams.