Roof Leak After Snow

Most roofing materials are designed to work under the influence of gravity.

Roof leak after snow.

This keeps the warm air in and the roof at a constant temperature thus eliminating melting snow and roof leaks from occurring. When i checked the roof i saw all the snow had fallen off the two story roof and landed on the addition. The cold weather turns the super chilled water to ice and the ice pack begins to get thicker and thicker creating a dam quite like hoover dam but a much smaller. If you have a low slope roof area accumulations as little as 1 thick can cause problems.

In the photo you can still see signs of an ice dam. Dormer leaks can be caused from a number of issues. In order to avoid melting snow and roof leaks you need to have very good insulation ventilation and an effective air barrier. Likewise a heavy blanket of snow can hide the significance of an ice dam making it hard to ascertain it s size.

The soffit that meets the roof is one of the toughest areas to waterproof. Rotten or missing trim or siding can allow water to leak behind flashing and into your roof. The roof leaked a few days after a foot of snow had fallen. Worn out flashing or missing sealant can also cause roof leaks around dormers.

Heat leaking up from your home is melting the snowpack in the tight roof canyon. It was warm enough for the snow to melt during the day but it would drop below freezeing at night. An ice dam occurs when snow melts and the water freezes when it hits the colder edges of your roof. This roof leaks during the snowy part of winter and during storms in the summer certainly due to poor flashing.