Prevent Ice Dams This Winter

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How to Prevent Ice Dams This Winter

Ice dams – they create those long, glistening icicles that look gorgeous but can cause extensive damage to your home.

Take these steps now to prevent ice dams, before the first big winter storm of the year:

Ice dams form when…

• Heat from your home warms the roof and melts the snow.
• The melting snow re-freezes on the cold edges of the roof, accumulates and forms an ice dam.
• As the snow melts, water backs up behind the ice dam, flows under the shingles, and leaks into your house.

Seal it up

• If you haven’t already done so, get a free energy audit from your utility company. They can help you detect the trouble spots around your home that can cause ice dams.
• Insulate as much as you can. Insulating will help keep the surface of your roof cold so that the snow doesn’t melt and cause ice dams.
• Seal up any air leaking from the warm parts of your home, and improve ventilation in your attic with fans. Your utility company or your electrician can help you figure out what’s best for your home.

If you plan to replace your roof, install a water barrier under the shingles (sometimes called ice and water shield) so that even if an ice dam forms, the backed-up water cannot get into your house.

What you can do after an ice dam forms:

• Rake the snow off the roof – Rake as much snow off your roof as you can while standing safely on the ground. Use a long-handled aluminum roof rake with wheels, so you won't harm your roof. If you can’t reach the snow from the ground, or don’t have the right equipment (or just don’t want to do it yourself), call a professional roofing contractor.
• Blow in cold air - If you spot water leaking into your home, aim a box fan at the underside of the roof where the leak is. This targeted dose of cold air will freeze the water and temporarily stop the leak while you deal with the snow and ice dams on the roof.

Stay safe

Please stay safe and don’t get on the roof to attack an ice dam. You could cause even more damage to your roof, and you could slip and fall off the roof and seriously hurt yourself.

Making sure your gutters & downspouts are clear of debris/obstructions is also helpful.