CONSIDER:
• Ice Damming
• Cleaning
• Annual Maintenance
• Covers.
Ice damming has been one of the largest problems the last couple of years due to the unusual amount of snowfall that we have had here in the Midwest. The cause of the ice dam is the warm air rising into your roof melting the snow and then freezing again as it comes in contact with the unheated soffit. Once enough ice has built up the water has no where to go but up the roof generally back flowing under shingles and over the tar paper, and into your home.
The best way to deal with this is to have your home inspected for possible areas that may lead to future dams. Install a heat wire in the most critical or largest problem areas. We also advise using thermostats on the heat wires so that the wire is not burned up within the first year by being constantly on.
If you are reading this and already have a problem a quick way to fix an ice dam is to fill a nylon stocking up with calcium chloride and lay it across the ice and over the front edge of the gutter to create a kind of channel for the water to go. (This is not a guaranteed fix but in most situations gets people thru until spring.)
Cleaning is very important to the continued life of your gutters as well as your shrubs, siding and basements. Most people recognize that they have a problem on two occasions;
1. When they have water pouring over their gutter and not down the downspouts,
2. When they have a small tree growing out of their gutter.
The first could just be a shingle or tennis ball plugging the downspout. The second is generally the bigger problem. This is from general neglect and generally the gutters have a significant amount of debris in them. This does a couple of things, first it causes the gutters not to perform but it also creates undue stress on the gutters and fascia that the gutter is attached to (and possibly damage to your soffit and fascia).
Annual maintenance is a very simple inexpensive preventative way to keep your gutters functioning properly for years. Start by cleaning regularly. Then follow up by doing a quick check on how your gutters have been draining. Are they holding water due to bad pitch? If not then go thru your entire system. Check to see if there are any loose or damaged brackets or downspouts and tighten or replace them. That downspout that the lawn company has been running over with the mower for the past five years is a problem. Little things like this are the type of thing that will not allow the water to get away from your home and your basement for proper drainage.
Gutter Covers
You may want to consider gutter covers. However, none of the covers on the market today are perfect. You need to consider what types of foliage you have in your area as well as the amount of roof area covered by one gutter or the other. Not all products are good on all roof styles. Call for assistance if you have questions regarding this issue.
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