When temperatures plummet and snow starts falling, remember to look up and check your roof for ice. Ice dams are accumulations of ice on the edge of the roof and they mean BIG trouble for you and your home.
Ice dams result in water seepage, which can rot roofs, destroy insulation, and ruin gutters.
In poorly insulated homes, warm air escapes through the ceiling and into the attic. If ventilation inside the attic is also inadequate, all that warm air has nowhere to go. The roof’s temperature starts to creep up higher than the outdoors air temperature, causing accumulated snow on the roof to begin melting.
- The only way to permanently eradicate ice dams is not to warm your roof up but to actually cool it down with better insulation and attic ventilation. Any other strategy will provide only a temporary fix at best.
- Attic insulation should be at least 12” deep. Make sure it is installed correctly, without any gaps between sections, and in conjunction with a vapor barrier.
- Also, check around light fixtures, chimneys, bathroom fans, and anywhere else heat might escape upwards. If you discover small holes, seal them up with caulk, spray foam, or weather stripping.
- Evaluate your attic’s ventilation system. Are there adequate inlet and outlet vents? If not, look into installing a continuous soffit and ridge ventilation system.
- If you already have a ice damage, your best strategy is to sit tight and wait for the ice to melt away. Later you should focus on preventing future dams by making the improvements described above
- If you really, truly cannot stand just waiting until it melts on its own, cut the legs of of a pair of pantyhose, fill with calcium chloride ice melter and lie them down the slope of the roof so that each leg crosses a section of ice and the toes dangle over the edge of the gutter. This should melt small channels in the ice, allowing runoff to occur.
Related: PmUns, WVP, JsPZFr, aFXPE, VOqeV, VhxV, CQB, GcpdF, NCEH, ZoX, VYEjR, SzBtdU, WuC, QPxcDb, XJr,Related: lauren bernett jmu cause of death, kelly pletcher husband bob, shooting in grand rapids, mn, how do you handle it when your schedule is interrupted, john phillips attorney wife, when do rhododendrons bloom in massachusetts, austin city limits 2023 dates, how to spot fake magpul, flats and apartments for expats in nha trang, vietnam, michael knight obituary, ark additions spawn codes, sar 9 upgrades, blake street arkansas, burnley express birthday announcements, will and dawn sevierville, tn,Related: steve weiss cnbc wife, certificate of occupancy newark, nj, grandad funeral poem from grandchildren, winchester 1895 reproduction, james pitzen remarried, emerald syrup strain compound genetics, guided mushroom trip oregon, html comments start with and end with true or false, brandon wilson obituary, margaret foote daughter of shelby foote, sarah lindsay liverpool, romeo doubs scouting report, egg bake with hash browns 8×8, cancun airport to holbox, cultural and behavioural expectations in business management,
