And So It Begins: Winter Has Come Early

Winter has come early in the Midwest and Northeast. As early as mid-October, many states, such as Pennsylvania, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Michigan, to name a few, are already seeing snow. With winter starting so early this year, homes are in danger of ice dams, and snow damage as the snow totals quickly rise with the season.

Dangers of Early and Heavy Snow

Last year, Boston saw an unprecedented amount of snow, breaking not only records but roofs and homes. With an early start of the season, there are several dangers homeowners can expect:
∙ Roof Collapse. While a small layer of snow may actually act as insulation to your home, as the snow piles on top of itself, the weight can become unbearable for many roofs. Too much weight will inevitably lead to collapse and structural damage.
∙ Ice Dams. As snow begins to melt, it may form icicles from your roof and gutters. IF these icicles continue to form, they can block additional melting snow from draining off the roof, and instead cause the water to leak into your home. Additionally, they can be quite heavy and cause structural damage.
∙ Loss of Power. If snowfall is heavy, it may cause power lines to break. As the snow accumulates through frequent smaller storms, power lines may be damaged and eventually collapse. If the snow is frequent, power companies may not have enough time to fix the original outage, causing extended loss of power. This extended loss of power can cause other health and structural damages in the home.

Prevention and Reaction

The first and most important piece to protecting your home and family from damage during the harsh winter is prevention.
∙ As simple as it may sound, remove snow from your roof after every snowfall. This will help ensure the roof is not gathering more snow that it can handle. It can also help prevent ice dams by removing the potential for melting snow.
∙ Keep your gutters clear. If snow is melting, keeping your gutters clear will allow smoother water flow to help prevent ice dams.
∙ Purchase a backup generator. This will help ensure you are able to maintain heat and electricity even when the power is out.
What if the snow is falling faster than you can prevent damage? What then?
∙ Call a professional to help with snow removal from your roof and gutters. If the damage is already done, obviously, you may only be able to prevent further damage while waiting for repair. A professional snow removal service can at least clear the roof to allow for less damage moving forward.
∙ Hire a properly trained and insured ice dam removal company. If an ice dam does form on your roof, it is imperative that you hire a well-trained, properly insured ice dam removal company to remove the ice dam. The company should use proper equipment, not an ax or a blow torch (you do not want to cause another problem), have the necessary worker’s compensation and liability insurances, and come highly recommended by accredited organizations.
With our state of the art ice removal process and 20 years of experience, RTD Ice Dam Removal is the ice dam removal expert. Give us a call today at 877-687-3639