Call Princeton Air Today To Get Rid Of Ice Dams For Good! 609-799-3434
As any New Jersey homeowner knows, winters can be pretty harsh on the exteriors of your house. If not kept in check regularly, your home can develop problems you may not even notice at first glance. Ice dams are one of these common problems that can be easily prevented by a combination of a proactive homeowner, and a visit from the professionals at Princeton Air.
What Is An Ice Dam?
Ice dams are the buildup of ice that appear at the edge of your roof, which can result in dangerous icicles and damage the structure of your roof, attic and home. Unfortunately, the work involved in removing an ice dam once it has formed is extensive and can be costly. The best way to combat ice dams is to understand the factors that cause them to form, and then take steps to prevent them from forming in the first place. That’s where the Princeton Air team can help!
What Causes An Ice Dam?
Under normal circumstances, gutters & downspouts are in place on a home to ensure water runoff from the roof makes its way down & away from the house. However, during the winter months, snow accumulation on the roof may melt over surfaces of the roof that are warmed by an underlying attic, drip down to the end of the roof, and then refreeze in areas where there is less surface warmth, like gutters & overhangs. Eventually, a block of ice may form over the gutter or at the edge of it, preventing further roof runoff from properly draining. All it takes is a little trickle of melted snow to pool up and leak back under the roofing shingles and into the home. This can cause severe structural damage to your home and can cause even worse problems like mold formation. This is why prevention is so important.
How to Prevent Ice Dam Formation
Preventing ice dams takes some work and financial investment on the part of the homeowner. Some of the most effective solutions for prevention include the following:
Air Sealing
To prevent large quantities of heat from escaping through your roof, having your attic air sealed is often the most cost-effective, and important, first step. By having your attic air sealed, you can reduce or eliminate the warm air that escapes from your home into the attic, thereby reducing the attic air temperature enough to keep it from melting the snow – let the sun & above-freezing temperatures do that for you! While some skilled homeowners might be able to do some of this air sealing on their own, an air sealing job performed by a highly trained team of professionals – like those at Princeton Air - will yield immediate results for the comfort of your home and help prevent the likelihood of ice dam formation.
Adding Insulation
Increasing the quality and quantity of the insulation in your attic can drastically increase the lasting effects of an air sealing job, and help keep your home’s heated air where it should be – inside your home. A home insulation job by our team of pros may prove to be the icing on the cake for your home’s comfort. The implementation of high-quality insulation materials like cellulose and spray foam insulation will provide a safeguard for your home’s hot air in the winter and remove most threats of ice dam formation.
Installing Attic Ventilation
It is often surprising how many homes in the central New Jersey region were built without adequate “natural” (non-mechanical) attic Ventilation. Proper attic ventilation is a great solution for your home that can regulate the natural flow of air in and out of your attic, thereby helping to reduce the temperature differences between outdoor air & attic air; in doing this, you can significantly reduce or even eliminate the roof heating that leads to snow melt. Adequate attic insulation also helps keep moisture accumulation in check, which helps keep mold growth in check. The Princeton Air crew will install the best quality ventilation equipment in your New Jersey home, and keep your home’s air clean and fresh this winter.
How Princeton Air Can Help You Prevent Ice Dam Formation
Preventing ice dams takes some work, and a financial investment on the part of the homeowner; but the benefits of this type of investment far outweigh the initial costs. The BPI Goldstar Certified professionals at Princeton Air specialize in helping you identify the sources of ice dam formation in your home, and then will work with you to put an action plan in place to address them. And, before you start wondering what the cost of a Princeton Air home insulation inspection (which is the first step in this process) might be:
