How Dangerous Are Icles From The Gutter

Many roofing and gutter companies around the country tell clients to leave the icicles.

How dangerous are icles from the gutter. Icicles are a common sight in the winter but despite their pretty appearance they can pose a threat to people pets and gutter systems. Accumulated ice and icicles can cause gutters to crash. To prevent icicles from forming keep your gutters clear of leaves needles and other debris. As the sun shines down onto your roof it will melt the snow and ice on the surface first which means the icicles will disappear and the gutters will be free flowing immediately rather than days or weeks of thawing and refreezing.

While rare death can occur from being hit by a falling icicle. The first of these is that falling ice can act in unpredictable ways and in trying to remove it you run the risk of injuring yourself or others. The resulting water will run down the roof and re freeze at the eaves or gutters when the outside air is below 32 degrees fahrenheit. Icicles form when your gutters are obstructed by debris which can cause water to back up and settle on your roof.

There are several risks to knocking icicles down yourself. When it comes to icicles on gutters the warm air causes the underside of the roof to warm up and can thaw snow and ice. They can fall on unsuspecting pedestrians or homeowners. This can cause one of two problems 1 icicles 2 ice dams.

Another risk is the icicles tearing the entire gutter away from the side of the house. But to the wallets of a homeowner knocking huge icicles hanging from a roof can be a costly catastrophe. A single gallon of rainwater can weigh as heavy as eight pounds. Also the huge weight of ice and snow will not be a burden.

If you re a homeowner who recently installed gutter guards and woke up to see icicles hanging from your gutters you re probably wondering what the heck is going on especially if this is the first time it has happened. Clogged gutters and downspouts generate excessive weight which can damage roofing and gutters.