Icicles may be pretty but they can tear off gutters, loosen shingles, and cause water to back up into your house. Here are a few prevention tips, fast fixes and long term repairs.
Fast fixes for Ice Dams: Blow in cold air
Hacking away at ice dams with a hammer, chisel, or shovel is bad for your roofing--and dangerous for you.mmAnd throwing salt on them will do more harm than good. Just short of praying for warm weather, here are some stop-gap measures I recommend.
Take a box fan into the attic and aim it at the underside of the roof where water is actively leaking in. Mathis targeted dose of cold air will freeze the water in its tracks.
Rake It
Pull off snow with a long-handled aluminum roof rake while you stand safely on the ground. A rake with wheels will instantly change the exterior temperature of your roof without damaging shingles.
Deice It
You can also diminish the damage after the dam has formed with panty hose! Fill the leg of a discarded pair of panty hose with a calcium chloride ice melter. Lay the hose onto the roof so it crosses the ice dam and overhangs the gutter. If necessary, use a long-handled garden rake or how to push it into position.mmThe calcium chloride will eventually melt through the snow and ice and create a channel for water to flow down into the gutters of the roof.
Permanent Fixes For Ice Dams
Getting rid of ice dams for good is simple, in principle. Just keep the entire roof the same temperature as the eaves. You do that by increasing ventilation, adding insulation, and sealing off every possible air leak that might warm the underside of the roof.
By taking care of common trouble spots, listed in order of priority. you should enjoy dam-free winters and use less energy to boot.
1. Ventilate eaves and ridge: A ridge vent paired with continuous soffit vents circulates cold air under the entire roof. Both ridge and soffit vents should have the same size openings and provide at least 1 square foot of opening for every 300 square feet of attic floor. Place baffles at the eaves to maintain a clear path for the air flow from the soffit vent.
2. Cap the hatch: An unsealed attic hatch or whole-house fan is a massive opening for heat to escape. A cover the. with weather-stripped caps made from foil-faced foam board held together with aluminum tape.
3. Exhaust to the outside: Make sure that the ducts connected to the kitchen, bathroom, and dryer vents all lead outdoors through either the roof or walls, but never through the soffit.
4. Add insulation: More insulation on the attic floor keeps the heat where it belongs. To find out how much insulation your attic needs, check with your local building department.
5. Install sealed can lights: Old-style recessed lights give off great plumes of heat and can't be insulated without creating a fire hazard. Replace them with sealed "IC" fixtures, which can be covered with insulation.
6. Flash around chimneys: Bridge the gap between chimney and house framing with L-shaped steel flashing held in place with unbroken beads of a fire-stop sealant. Using canned spray foam or insulation isn't fire safe.
7. Seal and insulate ducts: Spread fiber-reinforced mastic on the joints of HVAC ducts and exhaust ducts. Cover them entirely with R-5 or R-6 foil-faced fiberglass.
8. Caulk penetrations: Seal around electrical cables and vent pipes with a fire-stop sealant. Also, look for any spots where light shines up from below or the insulation is stained black.
We hope this article has been helpful to you!!
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