Settled snow and ice on your roof can give your home a scenic winter look. While attractive, these ice buildups along the edge of your roof can damage your gutters, materials, and other roofing features. To avoid the need for roof repairs, make sure you properly handle ice dams and prevent them from forming. Here’s what you need to know. 

How to Manage Ice Dams

Why They Form

When snow melts and moves down your roof to the gutters, it can freeze again at the edge. Often, it melts because of the HVAC heat escaping your home and then refreezes. The resulting dam will inhibit future melting water from reaching the gutters, resulting in more freezing that creates a larger ice dam.

The most immediate problem with ice dams is that they add significant weight to your gutters. The stress will gradually loosen them. On steeper pitches, they may also tug on the shingles, loosening them. If water backs up behind the dam and sits, it can gradually erode the shingles beneath and begin leaking into your home.

Attics are the perfect environment for mold growth, as they’re warm and dark. Coupled with the general water damage and the need for roof repairs, ice dams can leave you with a hefty repair bill.

How to Prevent Them

To prevent premature melting, properly insulate your attic to prevent heat transfer. Lay fiberglass insulation sheets, or use spray-foam insulation to fill tight, hard-to-reach areas. Also, make sure that warm air is being properly expelled from your home through an exhaust pipe.

Clear your gutters, as well, so melting water can quickly travel to the downspout. If an ice dam does form, leave it alone. It can be dangerous to break it up on your own, and you may damage your roofing. Instead, call a roof repair professional, who will have the proper equipment.

Are you looking for a roofing contractor in the Greensboro, NC, area? Roofing-Pro will handle all of your pre- and mid-winter roofing needs. They’re backed by 145 years of combined experience and handle roof repairs, replacements, and installations in Guilford County. Call (336) 841-1222 to schedule an inspection, and visit their website to learn more about the company. Connect on Facebook for more roofing tips.