Why should you hire a gutter cleaning Melbourne? Ice dams can develop in your gutters if there are obstructions to water flow or other debris preventing water from leaving the system. This results in water pooling in the gutters, which, when the temperature drops, turns to ice and produces all sorts of problems. A simple chore, preventing ice jams in your gutters depends on where you live and the severity of winter in your location.
The Problem With Ice Dams And Why They Should Be Avoided
When dams form, they may damage your home by tearing off gutters, causing shingles to come loose, and leading to a backup of water that floods your home. Consequently, unsightly issues like peeling paint, warped flooring, and damaged and drooping ceilings appear. And wet insulation in the attic causes the R-value to drop and attracts mold and mildew. Here’s how to stop an ice dam from forming in the first place or eliminate one if it’s already there.
To What End Do Ice Dams Serve?
Ice dams may develop on your roof when your attic is colder than the outside air. As a result, roof snow will melt and run down into the gutters, where it will refreeze since the temperature there is the same as outside. This ice formation may be made much worse by gutters that are clogged.
As the ice builds up, the remaining water will seep beneath your shingles, deteriorate your underlayment, and leak through your roof. You can prevent ice dams from forming if you immediately deal with their underlying causes.
Poor insulation in the attic: Letting heat out of your attic is bad for your electric bill and may lead to overflowing gutters from melted roof ice. This extra water will eventually form an ice blockage on the roof if it is not properly drained.
Roots obstructing the drains: An obstruction to water flow is the primary reason for ice formation. It may be debris like leaves and sticks or even just ice that has accumulated and has to be scraped off.
Neglecting to clear snow: After each snowstorm, use a rake to remove the snow from your roof to reduce the amount of roof melt that flows down into your gutters. When the temperature lowers, less water in the gutters equals less ice in the gutters.
Solutions for Melting Ice Dams Swinging Winds of Freezing Temperature
The damage you do to your roof and the risk you put yourself in while attempting to remove ice jams by hand are significant. Also, your plants will suffer more damage from the salt than the ice from not having it on the surface. Here are some temporary solutions till the weather improves.
The best way to stop water from entering your home via the roof is to take a box fan up there and direct it beneath the leaking shingles. To halt the water in its tracks, this blast of frigid air has been directed at it.
Methods For Reducing Ice Buildup
Put a potty house full of ice melter (calcium chloride) on top of an ice dam. Pantyhose may also be used to lessen the impact after a dam has developed. Pack some calcium nitrate ice melter inside the leg of an old pair of stockings. Place the hose on the roof, so it extends over the overhanging edge of the gutter and the ice dam.
Use a long-handled gardening tool like a rake or hoe to help move it if needed. With time, the calcium chloride will melt the snow and ice, making a path for the water to follow to the drains or down the roof. We now move on to a list of permanent solutions that will hopefully melt away all those ice dams.
Maintenance Of The Gutters Is Critical
Cleaning your gutters regularly should be sufficient to prevent ice dams from building in the gutters in much of the central and southern United States. If your gutters tend to gather leaves, you should get them cleaned out periodically in the autumn and winter to keep the downspouts from clogging.
We recommend thoroughly cleaning your gutters twice a year, once in the late autumn and once in the dead of winter. This will ensure that your gutters are clear of any debris that may have fallen since your previous cleaning and will function properly for the remainder of the winter. One may need to take more extreme steps if one resides in the northern United States. Like your southern neighbours, the first step is to check and double-check that your gutters and downspouts are completely free of debris after the autumn leaves have fallen. It is vital to inspect the downspouts, and you have confirmation that they are free of obstructions. Whether you want to test this, you may use the tried-and-true method of putting a penny in and seeing if it comes out the bottom. They will be transparent and reliable if this information is made public.
Avoid The Hassle And Work With A Professional
Only roof cleaning Melbourne experts have the tools and training to remove ice from a roof safely. Commercial steaming equipment allows for the safest and most efficient ice removal from your roof. Their peace of mind assurance may be the quickest fix, but it will set you back between $200 and $300 each hour.
To begin, they remove snow from a perimeter of a few feet around the roof. Next, they will use hot water under pressure to steam the ice, loosening it from the gutter or shingles. They might then chisel away at the ice barrier until the roof is frozen.
Conclusion
In the end, ice builds up along the eaves and forms a dam. As the snow melts on a heated roof, the water rushes down the slope, beneath the shingles, and enters the home.
