Icicles may be beautiful to look at but for homeowners it is a sign that pending damage may be done to our homes
. Icicles are signals that an ice dam may be forming on your roof. Ice dams are ridges of ice that block water from leaving your roof. As the water becomes heavy it may enter your home through leaks which can cause damage.
The following article contains some tips you can follow to prevent this from happening:
Add insulation. Insulation lessens heat loss from your living space. It slows down the movement of air between spaces with different temperatures. This prevents ice dams from forming as the space below your roof will have minimal difference in temperature with the eaves that hang past your home.
Because warm air will still undeniably reach your attic or space below your roof, besides insulation you will also need adequate ventilation in your home. Ventilation eliminates the warm air and the moisture that the warm air holds. Your ventilation system will require:
Vents to allow outside air to enter your attic. Vents that are installed close to the top of your roof. These vents allow the air in your attic to leave the home. Examples are gable vents and ridge vents.
Proper insulation and adequate ventilation are preventive measures one can take. Although, these measures cannot totally eliminate the formation of ice dams due to the fact that there will always be heat loss that will reach your roof. This makes the space below your roof warmer than the space below your roof overhang which is what causes these ice ridges.
One can also prevent damage by applying an ice and water sealant for the entire roof. This will prevent water to leak to the plywood of your roof and much more the interior of your home.
Get rid of ice dams by:Remove the snow that is above these dams to allow heat to melt them. Ice dams are formed on the edges of the roof. They will accumulate and will only get heavier if they are not allowed to melt.. * Electrified cables called heat tape are placed on roofs to prevent the formation of ice dams. * An improved system of the heat tape is the Roof Ice Melt system. They are also electrified cables that are made of copper and painted aluminium. They have a thermostat which controls when the system will be turned on or off. * Metal Roofs allow snow to easily fall of the ground.by: Tina Gleisner