Ice Dams

One of the biggest winter problems people encounter are ice dams. The best way to deal with them is to try to remove as much snow as possible with a roof rake from the ground. If that is not possible because the roof is too high, hire a professional with the proper safety equipment to do it for you.

There are two components to preventing ice dams, and both contribute to keeping your attic cold. It is important to insulate ceilings below attics, and to keep that attic properly vented.

Proper insulation in the attic keeps the heat in the living areas of house and out of the attic above. When the attic is too warm, the snow above on the roof melts.

Properly venting the attic keeps cold air moving through from bottom to top, and keeps the roof deck cold.

The water resulting from snowmelt flows down until it reaches roof surfaces cold enough to re-freeze, building up until the ice forms the "dam" that prevents it from leaving the roof. It has to go somewhere, and usually that is under and between the shingles and into the attic.

If your attic needs insulation, All Star Insulation LLC of Milwaukee can help you with the interior attic insulation. They can be reached at 414-243-9873.  They can blow in the attic with the proper amount of insulation necessary to keep the heat in the house and out of the attic.

The use of ice & water shield under the shingles and behind the gutter can help to minimize the effect of ice dams. This product is a self-adhesive roofing underlayment that also seals around nails to prevent water entry in the event of an ice dam. It is necessary to install the ice & water shield properly for it work properly. It needs to be installed over the fascia and under the gutter and gutter apron at the bottom, and two to three feet above the point on the roof where there is heated space below. For example, a house with 1' overhangs would benefit from one 3' course of I&WS. A house with 3' overhangs would need at least two 3' courses of I&WS to extend 2' inside the heated wall plane. The steeper the roof or wider the overhang, the more courses will be required to be inside the heated wall plane. It is very important that the bottom of the I&WS be behind the gutter and gutter apron, and not inside the gutter or over the gutter apron. There is a big difference between the two, because when the gutter freezes up, the water will be kept out of the soffit if the I&WS is behind the gutter.

If you have anything to add to this, please let me know by using the email link to the left. I am always open to suggestions and comments regarding best practices.