Fix Ice Dam Roof Leak

Ask this old house general contractor tom silva explains the best ways to keep your roof and gutters free from those dreaded ice dams.

Fix ice dam roof leak.

Pull off snow with a long handled aluminum roof rake above while you stand safely on the. Improving the vapour barrier and sealing off attic air leaks is the number one step to take to solve these issues. The lower roof formed ice dams that sent so much water leaking into the roof wall over a window that water was entering the home interior. Seal all points where warm air leaks from the living space into the spaces immediately below the roof sheathing.

Emergency procedures to stop indoor water leaks from a sloped roof roof ice dam. The best soffit vent is a. Blow in cold air. Unfortunately for many ice dams and the related water leakage problems are an unwelcome wintertime tradition here in new england.

An ice dam forms as a ridge of ice along the lower edge of your roof and prevents melting snow higher up on the roof from flowing past the dam. The best way to prevent or reduce ice dams is to eliminate or reduce the amount of warm air that is escaping into the attic and to reduce the relative humidity in your home. Install a ridge vent along the entire length of the roof s ridge. Here we describe the steps in getting the water under control and stopping the ice dam leak.

See below for a shopp. Take a box fan into the attic and aim it at the underside of the roof where water is actively. What is an ice dam. Next remove the ice dam by breaking it free in small chunks.

In northern climates ice dams can cause major problems. Install soffit vents on the soffit which is the under part of the roof overhang. Roof ice dam leak diagnosis indoor inspection points determine the building s prior leak and ice dam leak history determine what prior repair attempts had been made identify the obvious leak points where leaks were already visible identify and explore high risk points where hidden leaks and wet. Be very careful here you don t want to further damage.

We have found that the only way to cure an ice dam and prevent one in the first place is to. We ll soon see fall colors turn to bare branches and ice dam season will be upon us again so what better time to write about how to fix ice dam roof leaks. 5 steps to handling ice dam damage first get rid of any built up snow using a roof rake used for single family homes with pitched roofs or shoveling it. Short of praying for warm weather here are two stop gap measures we recommend.

This article illustrates the successful control of an ice dam leak on an older home.