Did you have water leak into your home during any of the snow storms this past winter?  If so, then you know the frustration and worry when water is flowing from your ceiling down your walls threatening your most prized possessions.  The cause of this leak is what is called an ice dam.  This ice dam occurs when snow and ice blow up under your shingles.  When the weather warms up, the snow or ice melt, water gets into your home.  This kind of damage can cause hundreds of dollars in costly repairs.  But don’t worry; there are some things you can do to prevent this from ever happening again.

If you do have a leak the best thing to do is take a screw driver and poke a hole into the spot where the water is dripping.  This technique will prevent the water from pooling in your ceiling and eventually caving in.  Place a bucket under the hole and either call a roofer or head outside.  If you chose to head outside, locate the area on the roof where the leak inside is occurring.  Using your ladder you can remove the snow or ice using a broom.  We don’t recommend getting on your roof because the moisture will present a serious fall risk.  Instead stay on the ladder and use the broom to sweep off as much snow and or ice as possible.  Please be sure to place your ladder on a flat and sturdy surface to avoid any falls.  Once the debris has been removed, the ceiling is dry, you can repair the ceiling yourself or call a painting contractor or handyman.  Since climbing a ladder is risky we do recommend calling a professional and this is a service any reputable roofing company can perform for you.

If you want to prevent an Ice Dam from every occurring in the first place, there are several things that you can do.  Make sure that all debris like dead leaves and sticks are removed from your gutters and valleys.  Another preventive measure is to have an ice and water shield treatment applied while your home is being roofed.  This treatment is standard on all of our customers’ homes and commercial projects.   In fact, this past year we had no customers call us to report an ice dam.  If there had been a problem, we would have come back out to their home or business and fixed the problem as soon as possible.  Since none of our customers had this problem during the 2011 snowstorms, we were able to relax at home and enjoy some free time with our families!

If you need debris removed from your roof before winter we have a roof maintenance program that will take care of that for you.  Call our office to schedule your appointment @ 359-3951.  For more information check this website or call our office and we would be happy to answer any questions.