It’s Winter Again,
And That Means Ice Dams
Winter seems to have finally set in and with it, the
possibility of ice dams. For those who endured the
winter of 2014-2015 in eastern New England, the topic
of ice dams became almost a daily feature of news and
weather broadcasts. It seemed as if everyone had one,
and those who didn’t still cast frequent, anxious
gazes at their ceilings.
In case anyone has forgotten, an ice dam forms when
accumulated snow on a roof begins to melt. As the
water attempts to drain off the roof, ice forms along
the eaves, where the air is colder. The condition is
most likely to occur when the air temperature in the
attic approaches or exceeds 32 degrees Fahrenheit, and
the outside temperature falls below 20 degrees
Fahrenheit. The resulting “dam “ caused by the ice
prevents the water from escaping. Water pools up
behind the ice dam, and ultimately seeps through the
roofing material into the interior of the structure.
Ice dams are hardly a new phenomenon, and are a
common cause of property damage during the winter
months. Newer homes, while not totally protected from
ice dams, are more likely to have adequate insulation
to keep the attic cool, and have effective roof
ventilation. Paul McDonagh, president of Independent
Claims Service of Westborough, Ma., commented on last
winter’s unprecedented volume of ice dams: “ We have
always dealt with ice dams as an anticipated
consequence of winter weather. No one foresaw the
thousands of ice dams, and resulting claims, which
arose so rapidly last winter. We mobilized all
available resources in order to keep up with the
constant flow of new claims. It was the same across
the industry.“
Once ice dams form, there are steps that can be taken
to remedy the problem, but some approaches may not be
practical for every property. Removing ice and snow
from a roof is a dangerous undertaking, best left to
professionals. There are many internet sources which
outline the various approaches currently employed to
eliminate ice dams. Once the problem has been
resolved, consideration should be given to improving
attic insulation and roof ventilation in order to
reduce the likelihood of a reoccurrence.
While no one expects the winter of 2015-2016 to
mirror last winter, ice dams are possible any time
there are snow-covered roofs and temperatures well
below freezing. Paul McDonagh concludes: “The ice
dams made a really tough winter even worse for
thousands of property owners. It was no picnic for
claims departments, either! We hope we don’t see
another winter like that for a long time.“
We are sure our readers would echo that sentiment.
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