3 Winter Roof Damage Issues Business Owners Need To Know

10/20/2018 (Permalink)

The heavy snow caused the roof to cave in.

Winter can be a hard time for business owners. Winter can cause damage to their homes but they also have to worry about their business. Here are some common issues that business owners need to be aware of as winter approaches.

Ice Dam Formation

When the warm air is rising from the inside of your building, it loosens the shingles as well as the snow on top of the shingles. The melted snow travels to colder parts of the roof where it freezes once again. That creates a blockade for the other snow that melts and falls which causes the water sitting there to seep through the lose shingles or any cracks on that roof. This will lead to water leaking into your building. One good way to prevent this is to keep the gutter clean and install a heat trace cable in the gutter to melt the snow and keep that flow going.

Icicle Formation

Similar to the ice dam formation, icicles are formed when the snow on the roof travels then freezes up on the edge of the roof. They can cause damage to your shingles and gutter and fall on the pedestrians walking by.  The simple tactic of using a rake and removing the icicles should do the trick.

Heavy Rooftop Snow Loads

All roofs are designed and built differently, which means they all support different weights. If a huge snow storm hits and your roof is left with a very large load of snow on it, your roof is running a very high risk of collapsing. And if it is bad enough, it can all fall through into your building and damage the contents in your building. If you see any signs of this problem call SERVPRO immediately.

With all of this being said, having a roof inspection before anything hits is a good idea to keep the building in good shape and everything inside that building. These points can also apply to your home as well.