You have icicles on the roof.
They sparkle and shine in the bright sunlight! Those pretty icicles dangling off the edge of your roof.
Where did they come from and why do we have them?
The snow on your roof should stay snow. If the snow melts naturally, slowly disappearing off the house roof your fine but if it melts too fast it can cause a real problem.
Excessive attic heat melts the snow on the roof, turning it into water. Water runs down the roof to the lower edge. When it hits the roof overhang…there is no heat and it freezes solid! Now you have and ice dam and icicles will start to form.
The ice quickly backs up under your shingles creating wet spots on the ceiling and different types of leaks inside the home. Ice expanses, the shingles lose their seal and break. Gutters get broken from ice and excessive weight. You may need many costly repairs in the summer months to come.
You can prevent the problems. Try some of these things to keep the ice away:
Heat loss: Your home is cozy warm in the winter. Most people heat the home 65-72 degrees. Outside it’s a whopping 5 degrees. Its best to keep the heat inside the home living area, don’t let it go up into the attic area. Keep your attic as cool as possible. Insulation properly installed in the attic space will help you keep the warmth down in the living space where you need it.
Venting: Airflow in your attic is good! The air needs to circulate. In a perfect world we would have 50% hot air being expelled from the roof vents and 50% intake coming from the soffit area. There are so many good vents out there on the market, pick vents best designed for your homes roof. Don’t forget to include the cool air intake to complete the airflow system and keeps the air flowing.
Expel hot air: Bathrooms vents, dryer vents and kitchen hood all create hot moist air. Where is the hot air going? Check the vent systems that expel air from your home. Many people are surprise when they find air exiting inside of the living area and attic area. Make sure your getting this hot moist air outside. Don’t let it get trapped inside where it can develop into a real problem.
Icicles are sure amazing but let’s keep them from growing on the edge of our roof.
