'Ice Damns' and Possible Damage to Your Home

'Ice Damns' and Possible Damage to Your Home

We all love the pictures of those warm and cozy living rooms, with a fire burning, and the reflection of the flames dancing on the ice cycles hanging from the roof in front of the living room window.  The dangers to your home behind the seemingly innocent beauty is quite real, and probable.  

The basics of an ice damn is moisture on the roof freezing at the edges of the roof where the warmth of the home no longer is heating.  An older home, or poorly insulated home is not automatically the reason.  A newer home that has been over insulated can just as easily be at risk.  

Many taller roofs are deceptive because we can not see the damns forming.  As the moisture comes to the edge of a roof and the now freezing temperatures turn the water to ice it starts a chain reaction.  Continued moisture from the warmer area of the roof runs to the newly formed ice.  It continues the same process and the ice on the roof top continues to thicken.

Continued build up of moisture has no where to drain, and it will back up.  It now is moving backwards so can crawl under shingles, flasing, etc and freeze.  Only now it is causing damage to the roofing structure.  

With more moisture continuing to look for somewhere to go it will take the route of least resistence.  This can be into your attic, walls, ceiling, insulation.

"The Ice Damn Company" of Minnesota gives a very detailed account of different possibilities of ice damns and the possible damage.  Below is an illustration from www.theicedamncompany.com.

If you live in an area of below freezing weather I strongly advise a visit to www.theicedamncompany.com for very detailed information on ice damns and the damage lurking behind the beauty of those ice cycles we all enjoy looking at. This is not just a Sandpoint Idaho or Bonners Ferry Idaho event.  This will happen anywhere there is sustained freezing temperatures and snow.  

Experience the change of pace Living In North Idaho will make.  Contact me as your local North Idaho Real Estate resource.