Winter Woes and Your Roof

Getting through a winter successfully often means knowing what maintenance you can do yourself and what you should have a Minneapolis roofing company do.  Snow and ice can lead to a lot of damage on your roof, avoid as much of it as you can by following these guidelines.  

Removal of Snow

Large amounts of snow on your roof can lead to ice dams and put a lot of extra weight and stress on it.  There is a special tool called a “roof rake”.  Using this tool to slowly pull snow down in the direction of the slope of your roof.  Never pull snow across your shingles or worse use a shovel to remove snow from your roof.  These two things can lead to damage of your shingles and possibly even cause leaks.

The Danger of Ice Dams

Ice dams can cause a lot of winter damage on your roof left unchecked.  Large icicles hanging from your roof are a visual sign that you may be developing problems with ice dams.  Ice dams form around the perimeter of your roof and stop the flow of melting snow.  They can push up under your roof and lead to extensive damage to both your roof and the interior of your home as water melts into your attic.  They should be removed quickly.

Before chipping at ice make certain you have removed any extra snow using your roof rake.  Then you can chip at the ice to try and get the water moving.  When it comes to ice dams you may be best served contacting a Minneapolis roofing company.  Having a professional roofer remove your ice dams can prevent you from getting hurt or from inadvertently damaging shingles while chipping at the ice.

The Aftermath of Hail Storms

Hail is frozen rain.  It forms frozen solid ice balls or pellets.  It can range in size from very small to golf ball sized plus, and the damage it causes can range just as largely. 

After hail storms look around at ground level to see if there has been damage done.  If your car has dents or cracked windshields chances are your roof has sustained damage.  If your foliage around the house looks battered and war-torn, you should be concerned about your roof.

You should have a Minneapolis roofing company out to look at your roof after hail storms to do a complete investigation. 

Making it work

You may have damage from winter storm that requires a Minneapolis roofing company, but until they arrive at your home you will need to deal with.  For example if winter storms have broken through windows or your roof its self you’ll want to get it covered temporarily.  These temporary fixes can stop water and snow from entering your home further and causing more damage.

A waterproof canvas tightly covering leaking areas can hold water off until your roofers arrive. 

Important Winter Tips

After snow and hail storms your roof can be icy and slippery, DON’T ever step on to it.  Do all your investigation from a ladder.  Not only is it dangerous for you, walking on your roof can cause further damage.  Don’t risk the fall, call a Minneapolis roofing company for a more thorough investigation.

The maintenance work you do in the fall can mean disaster or happiness during a winter storm.   Get the gutters clean before the ice starts.  Snow will make it dangerous to go out on your roof, have a Minneapolis roofing company employee do the repair work for you, they can do it safely.