How Snow and Ice Impact Your Roof

During the winter months, our roofs suffer much wear and tear. If not removed, the accumulation of snow and ice on the rooftop can be detrimental. Here are the ways that ice and snow impacts your roof.

First, ice build-up can cause trouble when it caves in, due to the accumulated weight of snowfall. When temperatures go under freezing point, rain water will flow to the lowest point of your roof and condense to large ice blocks. When these ice blocks increase in size, so does their weight, and the roof will be under pressure. Secondly, when water freezes, it tends to expand the small cracks that might be in your roof. When water creeps in the smallest spaces of your roof during winter time, is very dangerous. With just a little heat, the expanded space houses more water, which then freezes again causing the crack to expand even wider. This cycle makes up a lot of leaking and cave-in risks for your roof.

Ice dams can also easily occur, when layers of ice form around the drains or at the edge of the roof. They block the melting snow, and keep it from properly draining of the roof. This water that now forms behind the ice dam, adds an extra load of weight to the roof, potentially resulting in a collapse.

As now stated, when snow and ice continue accumulating on your roof, the cracks expand further just as reinforcements weaken. Therefore, having a good maintenance plan for your roof is ideal in order to save it from unexpected troubles. Perform a thorough roof check at least twice a year, keep all gutters and drains free of debris so it doesn’t clog drains and cause ice dams to form, and try to keep inner temperatures more constant in order to minimize heat loss, which can affect thermal shock. When choosing your roofing materials, the weather conditions are definitely also good to have in mind.

If your roof has suffered after the weather this winter, contact the experts at Biniek Specialty Contractors! Give us a call or contact us online today!