Fixing Ice Dams

Unfortunately, once you have an ice dam, it has to melt and ruin whatever is below it BEFORE you can correct it. There is no sense in correcting future issues until all the damage has been done.

Once all the damage has been done and the dam has been melted, the following should be done to correct future issues:

1) Seal off the indoor temperature from the outside temperature - first by sealing off penetrations directly into the attic.
2) If soffit venting exists, baffle the soffits so that air can freely pass into the attic. This is two-fold - one is to allow air into the attic so that the roof sheeting is maintained and the second is to allow as much cold to hit the roof as possible in the winter months. The colder the roof, the less likelihood of snow melting and freezing.
3) Insert all the way to the edge - a minimum of R38

Icicles are cute - but not on a roof.