Preventing Ice Dams this Winter

Icicles might look pretty in the winter. However — they can indicate that you have an ice dam.

Ice dams happen after heavy snow. Warm air in the attic causes the roof to warm up and the snow to melt. When the water runs down the roof and refreezes, it forms a mound of ice. The ice traps melted water which can seep under the shingles and drip through the roof into your home, which ends up causing a host of problems — including wet and stained ceilings and walls, peeling paint and wood rot.

The easy answer is to keep your attic and roof cold. If you see icicles forming or you notice wet spots on your ceiling or walls, there are things you can do to prevent further damage.

Proper insulation and ventilation in your attic will keep your roof temperature close to the outdoor temperature. You’ll need to make sure the attic floor, pull down attic staircases, recessed lighting all need to be insulated. Anything that allows the heat in your living space to rise to the attic should be insulated.

Typical cost to insulate attic: $850-$1500
Average cost to insulate vents: $300–600

Adding insulation will save you a lot of money in your energy bills. The Department of Energy reports that adding insulation to an unheated attic will have. Greater impact on energy consumption over placing insulation anywhere else in the home. A well-insulated attic won’t just save you cash in the winter; it will do the same in the winter! The department of energy estimates that you can save from 10%-50% on your heating and cooling bills every year. Not to mention, you’ll be preventing significant home damage!

Long rakes and brooms can push snow off the roof. However, this can be a difficult and dangerous task.

When there is no snow on your roof, you can have heated deicing cables installed along eave lines. Our experts don’t recommend this as a first option because it requires electricity to run to the cables and it will shorten the life of your shingles.

If you are sure that a leak will happen or see evidence of a leak (a current one or you’ve had a wet spot on your ceiling or walls that you haven’t addressed) you should get in touch with a roofing company.

You might not think about your gutters and downspouts in the winter. However, they can get clogged and cause problems. Our experts highly recommend having gutter cleaning done by a pro in the winter — there are obstacles which make it more difficult than warmer months, not to mention the hazardous conditions of ice and snow!

.

Related posts:

Digital technology is reshaping the workplace. The pace of innovation can often feel overwhelming, with a need to improve at ever increasing rate. A repeatable approach to answering the question ‘how…

Y muchas personas por falta de información o de promoción no saben cuando y donde se realizan shows con formato de Jams Sessions. Es una plataforma destinada a músicos de 18 a 65 años, con cualquier…

On a recent episode of The Tim Ferris Show, #177 to be exact, Tim played a follow up Q&A session from a previous podcast with Seth Godin and, as always, Seth’s insights were simply priceless. If…