Why Do Icicles Form On My Houses Roof

That s because the same conditions that allow icicles to form snow covered roofs and freezing weather also lead to ice dams.

Why do icicles form on my houses roof. The presence of icicles can mean that heat is escaping from your home or business or that you have been through a freeze and thaw cycle. In this manner icicles get longer and thicker over time unless the temperature stays consistently warm or consistently cold for a long period. Thick ridges of solid ice that build up along the eaves. This scenario is often the result of a warm attic.

In the winter the heat inside your house will often keep the roof warm causing snow that has gathered there to melt. As the snow melts water flows into a cold gutter gathering there and spilling over the sides forming icicles. So icicles hanging from a roof s edge may be a sign of an ice dam. Ice dams form when warm air from inside your home melts snow on the roof.

Clearly this will only occur when the roof surface warms above freezing it will be warm enough to melt snow. Icicles hanging along the eaves of your house may look beautiful but they spell trouble. When the meltwater reaches the colder eaves the part of the roof that extends beyond the walls the water refreezes and creates a buildup of ice along the edge of your roofline says this old house. Ice dams and icicles form when the snow melts runs down your roof and refreezes near the edge.

Icicles form simply because water running off a roof in above zero weather will start to freeze as the temperature drops below zero most often on mild sunny days followed by cold nights. Thick bands of ice form along the eaves of houses causing millions of dollars of structural damage every year. That s because the same conditions that allow icicles to form snow covered roofs and freezing weather also lead to ice dams. However when the roof edge is below freezing the melting snow will refreeze and create icicles.

Small icicles are a normal part of life as a homeowner in west michigan so you don t necessarily need to be worried but you do need to pay attention and make sure no larger problems may be present. Dams can tear off gutters loosen shingles and cause water to back up and pour into your house. Thick ridges of solid ice that build up along the eaves. Icicles form on gutters when excess water is not allowed to flow freely through the gutters.

Ice dams are formed when the snow melts and runs down the roof and refreezes on the coldest part of your roof. Icicleswill usually form when roof snow slowly melts and flows down the roof refreezing at the edge of the roof. Anyone who has lived in a snowy climate has seen ice dams.