A northern Virginia winter isn’t something you want to play around with. Snow, ice, high winds, and rain are all examples of elements that your roof must endure. Unfortunately, if your roof and exterior are not properly protected, these elements can take a heavy toll and cause storm damage to the exterior of your home.
Today, we’re outlining the appropriate steps to protect your roof this winter. A common misconception is that you can’t protect your roof during the winter. But, there are quite a few different things you can do to ensure your roof is able to weather the winter storms.
Clean Your Gutters
Keep your gutters clean to ensure they are working properly when snow and rain hit your roof. . If your gutters aren’t clean, or are clogged with debris from falling leaves and trees, ice will build up and damage the gutters.
Ice can also build up on your gutters and eventually begin to seep into your house if it doesn’t drain properly. Water working its way into the siding and interior of your home is something that you should work to avoid to the best of your ability. The cost of ice melting and the water damaging your home is extensive.
Make Sure Your Home is Properly Insulate
Inside of your home is ensuring that everything is properly insulated. Your attic is especially important to have insulated. You’ll lose a lot of heat through the top of your home without it being insulated, and that heat can cause the snow on your roof to melt.
As that snow melts, it will form patches of ice under the snow piled on top of your roof. Ice is never something you want on your roof. It’s heavy and takes a toll on your shingles. Keeping your roof well insulated is key to avoiding ice build-up.
Check to See if Your Roof is Vented Properly
When checking the insulation on your roof, be sure to see if your roof is ventilated properly. Your roof’s ventilation ensures that fresh air is always moving in and out from the roof’s eaves. This allows your home’s insulation to work properly and for no cold or warm air to build up in one specific area. If you’re unsure if your roof is ventilated and you don’t know how to check, reach out to your local roofing company.
Protect Your Pipes
Many homes have pipes built into the ceilings or attics of their homes. It goes almost without saying that cold weather and water pipes should never mix. When the weather gets too cold, and the pipes aren’t protected from the cold, they can burst and lead to a home filled with water. There are several ways that you can look out for your pipes:
- Keep your heat on even when you aren’t home.
- Make sure your home is insulated properly.
- Leave your cabinet doors open.
- Consider leaving the water running.
As a note, leaving the water running can be expensive and wasteful at times. In some cases, there isn’t much of a choice but you should try to find another way of keeping your pipes protected.
Each of these ways will help to keep your pipes from freezing this winter. But, instead of worrying about them all the time, contact a home inspector or remodel company to see if they can help you install the right insulation to keep the pipes from bursting.
Repair Your Roof When it Needs To Be
Repairing your roof when it’s damaged is essential to ensuring your roof doesn’t leak come spring. The last thing you want is to find out that the storm over the summer caused lasting damage that’s now letting water into your home.
When a big storm rolls through your neighborhood, be sure to check for storm damage so that you can ensure your roof will hold strong through the winter.
Ensure that Nearby Trees are in Check
Winter will often take a toll on your trees, and having them brushing against or falling onto your roof isn’t ideal. No matter the season, you should be keeping your trees trimmed and in check. Having tree branches scraping against your house, whether on the siding or the roof, can cause damage. You’ll also want to be sure that the trees aren’t too close to your house. Having a tree fall on your house is a big deal, and it’s definitely something to watch out for. If you don’t feel you’ll be able to remove tree branches on your own, reach out to a local landscaping company.
Know Your Tools
You need to understand what tools will and will not work on your roof. For example, the ice and snow-melt that you use on your driveway shouldn’t be used on your roof. Having the salt and other chemicals sitting on your roof can cause lasting damage, and overtime will really hurt your shingles.
It’s critical that you know what tools will and will not work on your roof. Some roofing companies offer ice dam removal. Having ice dams removed from your home will help to ensure that no water seeps into your house.
Use a Roof Rake
A roof rake is another useful tool that helps to keep your roof free of snow and ice. By casting the rake up onto the roof and pulling the snow back down with it, you can ensure that the surface of your roof breaths well and that no ice will form on your shingles. If you don’t remove the snow from your roof, ice can build up and, in turn, lead to leaks in your roof.
If you’re in need of ice dam removal or roof repairs, reach out to Roof Troopers today. We’re happy to serve you and get your roof in shape before the snow and ice can take too much of a beating on it. We also offer free roofing inspections if you’d like us to stop by and check for any damage.
We guarantee that you’ll be completely satisfied with the work that we perform on your roof.
