Three Ways to Prevent Ice Dams This Winter
December 28, 2017 at 10:09 pm,
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With the weather turning colder, you may soon notice icicles forming along the rain gutters of your home. Icicles may look nice, but they’re not a good sign for your roof. If ice is building up along the edges of your roof, it can damage your shingles and rain gutters and lead to roof leaks and all sorts of problems for your home. It’s important to get rid of ice dams when you see them forming.
Getting rid of ice dams.
Don’t use a shovel or any other tool to hack away at the ice. You can damage your shingles and rain gutters further. The safest way to remove ice dams is to run warm water through your rain gutter system to melt the dam. You can also use a roof rake which is a special snow removal tool that won’t damage your shingles to clear away snow along the edge of your roof. It’s also important to take proactive measures to prevent them from forming in the future. Here are three things you can do to prevent ice dams this winter.
Install heat cables
Heated cables along the edge of your roof will prevent snowmelt from re-freezing along the edges of your roof and is a relatively inexpensive solution. The downside is that it lessens the appearance of your roof and it doesn’t address the root of the problem.
More attic insulation
Ice dams form when the temperature in the attic are warmer than the outside air so that it melts the snow which then refreezes towards the edges of the roof. Better attic insulation not only reduces your energy bills but it will insure that snow on your roof doesn’t melt until the temperature outside is warm enough that ice dams can’t form anyways.
A metal roof
Metal roofs are typically much better at shedding snow in the first place if your roof slope is great enough and you won’t have to worry about ice dams. If ice dams are a recurring problem for you, you can schedule a roof inspection with a Spokane roofing company to first check if there is any roof damage as a result and to discuss the best solution for your particular circumstances.
Home improvement news brought to you by bartonroof.com
Source: realtor.com/advice/home-improvement/home-maintenance-checklist-december-2017/
Tags: roofing tips, ice dams, roof maintenance, rain gutter maintenance, Spokane roofing company
Getting rid of ice dams.
Don’t use a shovel or any other tool to hack away at the ice. You can damage your shingles and rain gutters further. The safest way to remove ice dams is to run warm water through your rain gutter system to melt the dam. You can also use a roof rake which is a special snow removal tool that won’t damage your shingles to clear away snow along the edge of your roof. It’s also important to take proactive measures to prevent them from forming in the future. Here are three things you can do to prevent ice dams this winter.
Install heat cables
Heated cables along the edge of your roof will prevent snowmelt from re-freezing along the edges of your roof and is a relatively inexpensive solution. The downside is that it lessens the appearance of your roof and it doesn’t address the root of the problem.
More attic insulation
Ice dams form when the temperature in the attic are warmer than the outside air so that it melts the snow which then refreezes towards the edges of the roof. Better attic insulation not only reduces your energy bills but it will insure that snow on your roof doesn’t melt until the temperature outside is warm enough that ice dams can’t form anyways.
A metal roof
Metal roofs are typically much better at shedding snow in the first place if your roof slope is great enough and you won’t have to worry about ice dams. If ice dams are a recurring problem for you, you can schedule a roof inspection with a Spokane roofing company to first check if there is any roof damage as a result and to discuss the best solution for your particular circumstances.
Home improvement news brought to you by bartonroof.com
Source: realtor.com/advice/home-improvement/home-maintenance-checklist-december-2017/
Tags: roofing tips, ice dams, roof maintenance, rain gutter maintenance, Spokane roofing company