Why Gutters Freeze

Frozen gutters do not allow water to easily leave the edge of the roof and this causes it to pool and freeze right there.

Why gutters freeze.

Clogged gutters can be a serious hazard and can lead to the formation of ice dams along your roofline accelerating the freezing of your downspouts. Gutters clogged with ice can also lead to the formation of ice dams on your roof which can create serious water damage in your home. This weight may increase the odds of your gutters and downspouts tearing away from your roof or siding which can lead to bigger problems involving water leaks and improper drainage. This impacts water diversion in many ways.

The water trying to come down the roof behind an ice dam cannot get to the ground and instead backs up under the shingles. One freeze and thaw cycle can lead to extremely heavy ice dams in the gutter system. First the sheer weight of ice dams in gutters can cause them to detach from the home warp or otherwise become damaged. How to thaw frozen downspouts.

A home s gutters have basically one job to divert water away from the top of the house as quickly as possible. To prevent your roof from having too much snow invest in a roof rake. To combat this issue you should take special care to clean out your gutters especially in the autumn when leaves and twigs are falling from the trees. In the winter when gutters are already clogged any amount of snow can cause big problems.

Eventually this results in roof leaks. That in turn creates ice dams. However occasionally water will fill up the gutters and freeze forming ice dams. Water expands when it freezes which can cause your gutters to warp and crack under the additional pressure.

When a heavy snow occurs keep excess water from flowing into your gutters and possibly freezing by using your roof rake to scrape some of the snow off of your roof.