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Old 02-10-2015, 02:02 PM
 
468 posts, read 523,518 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike 75 View Post
True, but the steep pitch prevents snow build up and mitigates the possibility of water intrusion. I've never had an issue with water intrusion on my steep pitched sections even when they have ice dams. Its the gentle pitched sections that give me problems.

The problem is that many houses around here are not built with the thought of large amounts of snow in mind.
I think my house has the worst possible pitch of roof. It's not steep enough to shed snow, but too steep to even think about climbing on in the winter.
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Old 02-10-2015, 09:40 PM
 
Location: Texas
2,394 posts, read 4,084,512 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MrGompers View Post
Ironically, the previous owner of my house gave me some heating elements that you place at the edge of the roof to help prevent ice dams. I never had them installed. I wonder if they actually work though since I've never seen a house with them.
They work to get water off the roof. But you might need a heater wire in the gutter to keep the water flowing from there.
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Old 02-11-2015, 11:10 AM
 
Location: Connecticut
5,104 posts, read 4,829,691 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by HeadedWest View Post
They work to get water off the roof. But you might need a heater wire in the gutter to keep the water flowing from there.
That's good to know. Since my gutters have a top covering it's not possible to put ice melt socks in there. Altho a thin wire might work.

All the stores in central CT seem to be out of stock on roof rakes. I might have to buy one from amazon.
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Old 02-11-2015, 12:02 PM
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MrGompers View Post
That's good to know. Since my gutters have a top covering it's not possible to put ice melt socks in there. Altho a thin wire might work.

All the stores in central CT seem to be out of stock on roof rakes. I might have to buy one from amazon.
You don't put the sock in the gutter, you lay it perpendicularly across the ice dam. It melts a notch out of the dam that lets water flow out from behind the dam. That way, it's not ponded on your roof trying to drip down into your house.

By the time you have ice dams formed, raking the roof is not going to get rid of them- they're frozen on but good. At best, raking the roof will relieve some of the pressure on melted water that will tend to force it up and under roof tiles.
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Old 02-11-2015, 12:13 PM
 
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For those of you just tossing the socks up there, how do you them down come spring (on a tall house)
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Old 02-11-2015, 12:19 PM
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by WouldLoveTo View Post
For those of you just tossing the socks up there, how do you them down come spring (on a tall house)
Tie a long piece of string on the end.
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Old 02-11-2015, 12:38 PM
 
Location: Connecticut
470 posts, read 1,664,195 times
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Living in a Dutch Colonial style townhouse the ice dams are horrible every year. The attics are barely insulated because the builder was cutting corners where ever he could. It is blown in and about 10 inches thick. The sides of the roof in the front and the back are cold all winter so the water running off freezes the instant it touches the sides. The gutters were all recently replaced with heavy duty commercial gutters and the ice had already destroyed most of them. We have leaks galore in the winter in many units and it had driven the cost of our insurance WAY up.

I spent an 2 hours yesterday chopping out a span of 20 feet of gutter to keep the ice out of my unit. When it comes in it likes to drip where the TV is and i really don't feel like replacing a brand new TV due to water damage.

How much insulation should be in an attic? I am having a home energy audit finally done this Friday. I am curious to see what they say about it.
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Old 02-11-2015, 12:43 PM
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike 75 View Post
Tie a long piece of string on the end.
I've never had a problem with them coming down- they wash off or blow off. Keeping them up can be more of a problem, because they tend to slip off the ice, to be lost in the deep snow until spring.

But a string would certainly work.
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Old 02-11-2015, 01:47 PM
 
Location: Connecticut
5,104 posts, read 4,829,691 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jaydez View Post
How much insulation should be in an attic? I am having a home energy audit finally done this Friday. I am curious to see what they say about it.
I found this link to be fairly informative regarding attic insulation.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VcRPGQoeO9Q

From this old house. In the video I think they say insulation with a R-38 rating.

My attic is the same design without insulation on the peaks. (where they later fill in with spray foam) I do have pink style insulation on the floor though.

Ice melt socks on a roof.

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Old 02-11-2015, 04:07 PM
 
Location: Near the Coast SWCT
83,500 posts, read 75,234,500 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MrGompers View Post
I found this link to be fairly informative regarding attic insulation.


From this old house. In the video I think they say insulation with a R-38 rating.
I have to interject...

1. His markup of the roof. That's not totally accurate, the ice damns are near the gutter so he should of shown the gutter aspect of it how the water will go underneath the shingles but on the corner, not up high on the roof. There's a lip from the edge of the roof into the gutter, the water and ice go under that lip.

2. Make attic same temperature as the outside?? So make it 0 to 30 degrees in the winter? Your heating bill downstairs will be a bit more unless you got some "NEW" and "GOOD" insulation on the attic floors. (after many years they aren't effective anyway)

3. Keep ventilation in the attic so the roof stays cold and snow wont melt. See #5 and you better have some good attic floor insulation because cold air doesn't rise and your recessed lights downstairs will be like cold pockets in your ceiling!

4. Make the attic warmer by using the spray foam. PLEASE do not have pets in the house if you're going to do that! That crap is toxic! AND... will suffocate the house in the summer! Horrible stuff.

5. Does he realize the melting comes from the outside as well?? Sunlight, Temps above freezing, rain, roof melters, ect. You're still going to get melting and refreezing no matter what you do inside.

I have no insulation in the rafters and I block all vents in winter. So the main level can stay warm easier in the winter and in the summer the house breathes!

Take the snow off the roof is the best method.

Once the snow is off, its a win win win...

W. You have a dry roof showing and its helping to warm the house up because the sun hits it directly!
W. No more weight up there
W. Nothing up there left to melt
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