Our Roof Is Leaking and We Move Tomorrow!

*All of the stories we share here are true but the names have been changed or withdrawn to protect our client's privacy.

At 9:30 at night we got a frantic call from Eric regarding an emergency they had at their home. Eric and Nicole had a pending home sale that was scheduled to close in two short weeks. On top of that, they were packing all their belongings and getting ready to move across country the next morning. That's when the unthinkable happened. Eric went into the garage for an item and heard an ominous sound.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

From the ceiling of his sheet rocked garage, he saw the puddle forming. He said he immediately rushed upstairs to the bedrooms that reside where the leak was forming but noticed no issues in the bedrooms. I told him it has be coming from the roof. Sorry friend. You have an ice dam.

We knew time was of the essence with an ice dam so we sprang into action. Within the hour, we had a crew out there shoveling off the roof because the first thing you need to do is find the source of where the ice blockage actually is. Many people think ice dams only happen in old homes, and that was Eric and Nicole's mistake. But that is false. This home was built in 2020 and it was just as susceptible as any other home and here's why.

Ice dams can happen any time there is a heavy snow fall and snow accumulates on the roof. If there is a warm day that melts some of it, that can turn the snow to an ice chunk that forms under the shingles and opens a path for the water to seep in.

In Eric and Nicole's case, the damage appeared minimal but we couldn't tell for sure until we could get all the ice removed. We shoveled all the snow off the roof and applied ice melt. In the garage, we set up an industrial size fan to dry out the sheetrock and insulation. Since this family was stressed about not being able to monitor the situation due to leaving town, we offered to check on the home for them a few extra times to make sure no additional damage popped up. We were already going to be at their home the following week to coordinate their estate sale,, but we wanted to ease their stress by offering to be their eyes and ears as well for the ice dam situation and assure them and their realtor that the problem would be fixed and not hold up the home sale.

Thankfully we were able to remove the ice dam with no damage and the home sale went through.

Ice Dams can show up quickly and cause significant damage without warning. As the temperatures start turning colder, be sure to be on the look out for material we will post on warning signs and preventative measures to take to avoid them. If you do find yourself in an unfortunate ice dam circumstance, do not hesitate to call because time is of the essence to avoid further damage from these tricky situations.