Gambrel Roof Ice Dams

Ice dams can be frustrating.

Gambrel roof ice dams.

Gambrel or mansard roofs and ice damming it s no coincidence that ice damming occurs most pervasively in the mansard or gambrel styled roof. An ice dam forms when the roof over the attic gets warm enough to melt the underside of the layer of snow on the roof. The roof stays cold and the snow melts from the top down not the bottom up. The design was popularised both in america and france by virtue of tax avoidance without regard for thermal performance.

So the water above backs up behind the ice dam and remains a liquid. An ice dam forms when the roof over the attic gets warm enough to melt the bottom layer of snow. Investment protection for your house means your roof from the exterior shingles down to the roof deck below will last longer and save you from having to replace it prematurely. We offer a 3 year guarantee on materials and labor so you know the system works.

The water trickles down between the layer of snow and the shingles until it reaches the eave of the roof which stays cold because it extends beyond the side of the house. An ice dam is a solid ridge of ice that forms along the edges of your roof. I have a gambrel roof and my ice dams are terrible. The meltwater then runs down toward the colder eave overhang where it freezes.

The snow melts into water and t. As the ice accumulates it forms a blockage that prevents the snowmelt from flowing off the roof. This causes the ice dam. As water flows down the roof it reaches the portion of the roof that is below 32f and freezes.

The dam grows as it is fed by the melting snow above it but it will limit itself to the portions of the roof that average below 32f. Ice dams form when the snow melts on an upper warmer part of a roof. You can read more about this on our blog staggering ice dam insurance claims. It will air seal the attic add insulation to current standards and prevent ice dams very effectively.

Once this thick ice forms it prevents melting snow from running off the roof. 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.