How To Prevent Ice Dams On Your Roof For Good

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How To Prevent Ice Dams On Your Roof For Good
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• While they might look attractive hanging from the
  edges of a roof in winter, icicles can actually
  be a sign of something much more unpleasant and
  potentially harmful, to come ice dams. These
  ridges of solid ice known as ice dams, form
  during snowy, freezing weather, and are often
  very thick. Forming along the eaves of a roof,
  they are more than capable of tearing off
  gutters, loosening shingles, and causing water to
  back up and start permeating your home.
• To help prevent ice dams from ruining your roof
  and costing you hundreds of dollars in repairs,
  here are some tips for preventing them, safely
  removing them, and making long-term repairs. But
  firstly, lets look at what makes ice dams so
  potentially hazardous for your home

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• Why are ice dams so bad for a roof?
• As mentioned above, ice dams that are left to
  build up can soon start to damage gutters and
  shingles, and can even cause water to penetrate
  your home and cause warped floors, sagging
  ceilings and plenty of unsightly stains and
  peeling paintwork. It can also affect the
  insulation in the attic, causing it to become
  soggy and lose its R-value, while encouraging
  mold and mildew to form.

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• How can you prevent ice dams from ruining your
  home?
• The best and most effective way to rid your home
  of ice dams for good, is to try your best to keep
  the whole roof at the same temperature as the
  eaves. This can be achieved by increasing the
  ventilation in your home, adding insulation, and
  sealing any potential air leaks that could allow
  warm air to heat up the roof from beneath.

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• Here are some of these preventative measures in a
  little more detail
• Ventilate the eaves and ridge
• Helping to circulate col air around the entire
  underside of the roof, ridge vents coupled with
  continuous soffit vents can be incredibly
  advantageous, and help put pay to ice dams for
  good. Just ensure that the ridge and soffit vents
  have openings that are the same size, and that
  they provide a minimum of 1 square feet of
  opening for every 300 square feet of the floor of
  the attic. To keep a consistently clear path for
  the soffit vents airflow, place baffles at the
  eaves.

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• Cap the hatch
• Openings in a home whereby heat can escape, such
  as an attic hatch thats unsealed or a
  whole-house fan, should ideally be covered with
  weather-stripped caps that are composed of
  foil-faced foam board, and held together using
  aluminium tape.
• Pay attention to all ducts
• Its important that all ducts connected to
  bathrooms, dryer vents and the kitchen, lead
  outside by means of the roof or walls, and never
  through the soffit.

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• Add extra insulation
• To keep heat where it belongs, add insulation to
  the floor of the attic, and to know how much
  insulation your home needs, you can consult with
  your local building department.
• Install sealed can lights
• If youve got old-fashioned recessed lights in
  your home, these typically give off a lot of heat
  and are hard to insulate without turning them
  into a potential fire hazard. Talk to a local
  contractor about replacing them with sealed IC
  fixtures, and then having them covered over with
  insulation.

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• Use steel flashing around chimneys
• The gap between the chimney and your home is
  another place for air to escape, but you can
  bridge the gap with the help of L-shaped steel
  flashing, secured with a fire-stop sealant.
• Seal and insulate all ducts
• By spreading fiber-reinforced mastic onto the
  joints of all of your homes exhaust and HVAC
  ducts, you can better seal and insulate them.

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• Caulk penetrations
• Using a fire-stop sealant, seal the areas around
  all electrical cables and vent pipes, and keep
  your eye out for black spots in your insulation
  where dirt from passing air is staining it.
• Ice dams can be a nightmare for homeowners during
  the winter months, but by taking preventative
  steps such as those listed above, and seeking
  professional guidance from a local roofing
  contractor or construction company, you can
  protect both your roof and your home, from
  unwanted icy invasions.

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• At I.T.M Construction Corp. is one of the best
  general contractor and roofing contractor in
  Astoria NY. Our family owned and operated
  business has been serving valued clients in
  Astoria, Queens and beyond, with a variety of
  high quality construction and roofing services
  for almost two decades. Whatever your needs,
  weve got a skilled contractor to handle them,
  and with fair pricing and quality workmanship. If
  you are looking for roofing repair contractors in
  Astoria, contact us at 718-956-8483.