As we move into winter, it is important to make sure your roof is in good shape and ready to protect you from the inclement weather that you are sure to encounter. One serious issue for your roof in the winter is ice damming. This can cause significant damage to your roof if you don’t work to fix the problem. Luckily, there are several solutions to help you avoid ice dams on your roof this winter. Nickerson Roofing is here to talk about some of the steps that can be taken to help you avoid a problem with ice dams this winter.
How Ice Dams Form
It is important to understand how ice dams form on your roof if you’re interested in avoiding them this winter. Ice dams are large chunks of ice, often look like icicles, that form on your roofline. They can be destructive to your roof and cause water to leak into your house. When there is snow on your roof, the heat from your house warms the roof except for the eaves. This causes the snow to melt, but once it gets to the eaves of the house, it freezes again. As the ice accumulates, the water will continue to build up. This can cause water to leak into your house because the water tends to seep under the shingles. This can lead to significant water damage in your home if you aren’t careful.
Tips to Help Stop Ice Dams
When you are working to prevent ice dams from forming on your roof, it is important that you keep the roof the same temperature as the eaves on your home. Here are some of the most effective ways to accomplish this:
– Ventilation: The first thing that you need to do is ensure that your roof has adequate ventilation. You don’t want hot air to build up inside your attic. It needs to be able to vent out into the outdoor air. This will help keep cool air moving throughout the attic.
– Insulation: The next thing you will want to do is add insulation to the attic. The heat that is inside your home should stay there. Insulation in the attic will help keep the heat inside your house rather than allowing it to leak into the attic.
– Heating Cables: Using a zig zag pattern along the edge of your roof, heating cables are clipped in place to keep the area warm and help keep ice from forming. You will also want those cables in the gutters and downspouts to avoid water freezing there as well.
Ice Dam Solutions, Roof Repair, Replacement & More in Truckee, Mystic, Tahoe City, Kings Beach & The North Lake Tahoe Basin of California
If you are concerned about ice dams this winter, you can turn to Nickerson Roofing to help you come up with solutions that will help you avoid them. We offer several different services that will help you avoid ice dams and damage to your roof. Call us today!
