With slightly warmer temperatures upon us, builders are warning about the dangers of ice dams forming on the roofs of homes.
Michael Mangrello, owner of roofing contractor Midwest Exteriors, LLC., out of Williamsburg, said ice dams are something homeowners need to keep on their radar this time of year.
“Her walls were swelled and bowed out. Her ceiling was sagging and bowing from the weight of the water and the insulation,” said Mangrello.
Mangrello said the damage was so bad, the homeowner couldn’t open or close her front door and her storm door was frozen shut.
He said the home had a metal roof with two feet of snow on it and about a foot of ice, along the front edge of the house.
“She hadn’t cleaned it off, didn’t even really think about it until it started leaking,” said Mangrello.
Mangrello said it escalated quickly. In two days the amount of water that came into her house from the leaking roof was inside the walls of her home.
“She noticed the leak on Friday. And I was there on Monday. And that was what happened in that short amount of time,” said Mangrello.
Mangrello said ice dams can form when snow melts and refreezes, forming a thick layer of ice.
That prevents melting snow from draining off the roof, instead pooling behind the ice dam, with nowhere to go.
“Eventually it’s going to work its way through the shingles coming through your ceiling, your insulation down your walls, into your windows.”
He said it’s not just water and mold that you have to be concerned about.
“Once you get that ice. It is a tremendous amount of weight. Thousands and thousands of pounds that’s sitting in here, your roof and your walls and can cause a lot of damage structurally,” said Mangrello.
He said ice dams are important to get it taken care of right away, but the best thing you can do is prevent it.
“The best thing you can do is try to keep your roof clear. Shovel it off. Make sure that you’re venting and insulation in the attic are adequate. You can have four feet of insulation in there, but if the attic isn’t vented and that heat that does rise through isn’t able to escape, it’s going to cause that snow to melt, and it’s going to freeze,” said Mangrello.
Mangrello also has this tip, if you spot icicles forming along the edge of your roof and it’s cold out-that could mean your home is not insulated properly, which could create ice dams.
“That’s telling you that you’re having a tremendous amount of heat loss in the attic and it’s not able to vent out,” said Mangrello.