How To Safely Remove Ice Dams From Roof

If necessary use a long handled rake or other tool to help get it in position.

How to safely remove ice dams from roof.

One way to remove an ice dam is to melt it using calcium chloride ice melt. Eliminate its fuel source if left alone the ice dam will continue to be built up by the snow and ice up on your roof. This blast of cold air will usually be enough to refreeze the fingers of the ice dam while the snow and ice is melting away on the outside of your home. So the first step is to remove this ice and snow using a snow rake which is a retractable rake that can extend up to about 17 feet or so in length.

One great non harmful way to combat ice dams is to point fans directly at your roof where the problem starts. To help prevent this fill up a pair of pantyhose with the salt you d use to get rid of ice on your sidewalk and tie off the ends. Using a roof rake remove snow 3 4 feet from the edge of your roof being careful not to damage the roof covering or to allow snow to build up around walking paths or to block emergency exits. If necessary use a long handled garden rake or hoe to push it into position.

Another preventative measure to take care of ice dams is to get rid of snow on your roof before it has a chance to melt. If an ice dam removal service spends 3 hours for example to complete a job it s fairly common for 60 90 minutes of it to be spent on roof snow removal for which the company s ice dam removal not snow removal rates would apply. When your roof heats up and melts the bottom layer of snow or ice the water leaks down to the edge of your roof and freezes again creating an ice dam. If your home is beginning to suffer the leaks indicative of an ice dam take a fan a box fan or small air mover into your attic and direct it at the section of roof suffering the leak.

This does involve a bit of manual labor on your part but it s a small price to pay for keeping your roof in one piece. Over time the calcium chloride will clear a channel in the ice dam allowing the water on your roof to escape. Here are five ways to remove an ice dam from your roof. By cooling down the underside of the roof snow won t melt in the first place and preventing ice dams from forming.

Lay the hose onto the roof so it crosses the ice dam and overhangs the gutter.