Ice Dams

Ice Dam-it! No, it's not a frozen reservoir, it's a hazardous and costly phenomenon that can affect your home. Those beautiful icicles that hang from your eves may be hiding a more insidious villain underneath...

Know How They Form

1. Heat collects in the attic and warms the roof, except at the eaves.
2. Snow melts on the warm roof and then freezes on the cold eaves.
3. Ice accumulates along the eaves, forming a dam. Meltwater from the warm roof backs up behind it, flows under the shingles, and into the house.

Damages

Ice dams can cause water to seep through the roof and ceiling of your attic. This can cause water damage such as plaster removal, chipping paint, roof decay and even mold growth. One an ice dam has formed, its extremely difficult to remove without further damaging your roof/interior.

Be Prepared!

The best weapon against an ice dam is to be proactive. Installing proper insulation in your roof to prevent heat loss is the best way to ensure they will never form. Another cheap alternative is a low voltage heat wire that can be ran along your roof. These stay on all winter and prevent ice from forming along the eves, keeping the water flowing through the gutters and onto the ground.

If you already have an ice dam at your home, be cautious! Do NOT attempt to hack it off with a hammer or pick; this will only damage your roof more. Call a professional and they will come and deal with the dam correctly. Our office has vendors on call that can deal with this for you!
If you have any questions or extra tips that we did not mention, leave a comment below, shoot us a tweet @MAcondoMGMT on Twitter or post on our wall on Facebook. We look forward to hearing from you!