Winter comes with its own set of maintenance concerns. Ice and snow are the causes of many home repair issues, especially when it comes to your roof. One of the most common Salt Lake City roofing problems is ice dams. Ice building up along the edge of your roof can cause all sorts of damage, which is not something you want to deal with when the weather is bitterly cold. At Patriot Roofing, we know that the best way to avoid major repairs is to prevent them.
The first step to prevention is knowing what causes the problem. Let’s start by looking at how ice dams form.
Ice Dam Formation
Ice dams actually start out as snow. But the snow that falls on your roof doesn’t stay as snow forever. It soon starts to melt and that is where our trouble begins. Because it is warm inside your house, the temperature in your attic is often above freezing. Because of that temperature difference, the lower layers of snow begin to melt first. The water then flows down to the edge of your roof, where it once again meets below-freezing temperatures. The water turns to ice and starts to form an ice dam. As this process repeats itself, the ice dam gets bigger.
Damage from Ice Dams
Ice dams can cause multiple types of damage to your roof and gutters. As water freezes, it expands, which can crack your gutters, loosen your shingles, or form leaks. If the ice dam gets particularly heavy, it can even tear your gutters clean off your house. In that case, the gutters will probably take some shingles with them and potentially damage your siding.
Prevent Ice Dams with Salt City Lake Roofing Companies
There are some short-term ways to prevent ice dams, including raking snow from the edges of your roof. There are also long-term solutions that your local Salt Lake City roofing company can help you with. Ventilating the eaves and ridge of your roof and repairing your flashing are the most common long-term solutions. If you have had problems with ice dams in years past, a roof inspection should be your first step.
