Tips For Avoiding Winter Roof Problems

If you own your home, you will need to be prepared to protect it against the various types of damage that can occur. While this is a basic responsibility of any homeowner, many do not fully appreciate what this will involve, when it comes to caring for the roof.

Understand The Full Range Of Roofing Problems Winter Weather Can Cause

It can be easy to underestimate the extent of the problems that winter weather can cause. For example, many homeowners will assume the weight from snow and ice will be the main threat that their roof will experience. While this can be a serious threat that you may have to face, it is far from the only issue. In particular, it is more common for the roof to be damaged due to being exposed to moisture for long periods of time. This can occur when ice dams form along the edges of the roof.

Install A Roof Thawing System

One effective way of preventing large amounts of snow and ice from accumulating on the roof is to install a thawing system. These systems are designed to keep the surface temperature of the roof warm enough to melt snow and ice. This will allow the moisture from these substances to easily drain off the roof. While a roof thawing system can be an extremely useful upgrade to make, it can be rather difficult to install without the proper training and experience, as it may be easy to leave gaps in the system that can allow these accumulations to form.

Clean Your Gutters Before The First Freeze

The gutters are a critical component of your roof, as they will direct runoff. If the gutters become clogged, they will be unable to effectively do this, which can lead to large amounts of water backing up. It can be much easier for the gutters to become clogged during the winter, as ice can form in them. This may be further compounded by the presence of leaves, sticks, and other debris. Thoroughly cleaning the gutters prior to the first freeze can help to mitigate this problem, by keeping the gutters as open as possible. Furthermore, if you notice large amounts of ice gathering in the gutters, you may want to break up the ice so that any runoff from melting ice and snow will be able to drain out of the gutters. This can be done by striking the exterior of the gutters until the ice breaks up or using a hand scraper to break up these deposits.

For more information, talk to companies like Advantage Window & Door Company.


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