November Newsletter 2012
**First off, our thoughts and support go out to everyone suffering from the effects of hurricane Sandy. To
those families who have lost loved ones and to those who are now rebuilding, God Bless**
Let’s talk winter, I don’t really want to, but it is coming upon us quickly. Winter can bring bright
white fluffy snow and everything it covers looks beautiful. Then that beautiful snow melts and when
temperatures go down, that pretty snow can turn into ice on your roof and cause major headaches.
Let’s start with one fact of winter, snow then ice, and then ice dams. Ice dams are thick ridges of
solid ice that build up along the eaves of your home. Snow melts on the warm roof and then freezes on the
cold eaves. When the ice accumulates along the eaves it forms a dam. Melted water backs up behind the
dam and flows under the shingles and into the house. These ice dams can also tear off gutters, loosen
shingles, and cause water to back up and pour into your house. We all know what happens when water come
through the ceiling. It can cause peeling paint, stained and sagging ceilings and wet plaster board, which can
lead to mold and mildew.
PREVENTION
One of the most important preventive measures is having the proper insulation and ventilation in
your attic, follow or exceed the state code requirements. There should be a 100% effective air barrier
between the house and the attic space. There should be no air leakage from the house into the attic space.
There are also some prevention products out there that you can use, such as installing heat tape.
TAKING ACTION
Before the dam is formed you can sweep off the snow from you roof with a straw broom. Just make
sure whatever you use doesn’t damage the roof and/or shingles. One simply fix for ice dams that have
already formed is to fill the legs of discarded pairs of panty hose with a calcium chloride ice melter. Lay the
hose onto the roof so they cross the ice dam and overhang the gutter. The calcium chloride will eventually
melt through the snow and ice and create a channel for water to flow down into the gutters or off the roof.
If you already have a leak, you can blow in cold air by taking a box fan into the attic and aiming it at
the underside of the roof where water is actively leaking in. The targeted dose of cold air will freeze the
water in its tracks.
CONCLUSION
As home and business owners we should familiarize ourselves with the terms of our policies before
something happens. Historically, most claims for damage from ice dams have been paid. In 2003 insurance
companies paid out over $50 million in losses due the ice dams. Let’s hope none of us are the recipient of any
of those losses!
Diagram on next page.