Close your eyes and imagine that picturesque wintertime vision of icicles hanging from the roofs of homes. Now your Columbus OH roofing company wants you to consider this: Those are actually called ice dams and they can be very dangerous for your home.
What is an Ice Dam?
An ice dam is a wall of ice that can form at the edge of your Columbus roofing system. Usually, they form at the gutters from melting ice or snow. Eventually, the water will back up behind the ice dam and create a pool of water that can leak into your home and cause damage to the roof, ceilings, insulation and, ultimately, your entire home.
How to Prevent Your Gutters from Icing
As a reputable Columbus OH roofing company, we will guide you through the many steps you can take now to prevent your gutters from icing and ice dams from forming. The more proactive you are, the less of a chance you have of dealing with costly damages as a result of snow and ice causing ice dams to form.
- Inspect your attic vents to make sure your insulation is not damaged
- Always be sure your attic is properly insulated
- Apply heat tapes. You can purchase tape or cables that include electric heating wires that you can install along the gutters to help melt snow and prevent water from backing up along the roof and freezing
- Always remove snow from your roof as soon as possible – this will prevent snow and ice from building up
How to De-Ice Your Gutters
Unfortunately, your roofing contractor knows that even if you are proactive, sometimes gutters will ice over. As a trusted Columbus OH roofing company, we are often asked, “What do you do when that happens?”
You can think of de-icing your gutters the same way you can think of de-icing many other things.
- Use a snow brush or shovel to clear the snow and ice and other debris from your gutters
- Clear all of the debris from the downspouts and inside of your gutters – you want them to be able to properly drain any water
- Consider using ice salt around the area, or roof melt to melt the ice
- Heated cables can be purchased (or heated tape) – this was the preventative method mentioned above and can be also used to de-ice your gutters
Your reliable roofer will also recommend using a roof rake. Many homeowners will use this to remove snow from their roof and this will also work for de-icing your roof. You just have to be careful of falling ice! Roofing companies have been using this tool for years, as it is a good method for prevention of ice dams, too. The less you let snow build up, the less chance of ice dams, in general.
Remember, you should always conduct roof inspections for damage, at least bi-annually. Consider letting an experienced professional take a look. Able Roofing has been the trusted roofing company for almost 30 years. Contact us today.
