Got Ice in Your Gutters? Here’s What to Do!
You see it all the time, especially in movies: icicles dangling from the roofs of homes during Christmastime. Even though winter is still a ways away and ice is hard to imagine with all of this heat, it will come around faster than you think. That’s why it’s important for you and your gutters to be prepared for ice. GutterPros is here to help!
When ice builds up in your gutters, it functions much like a dam does to a river: blocking it off. Not only that, but it breaks down the material of the gutter, making it even more susceptible to damage. Ice also weighs a lot, which could cause issue with how the gutter flows. As you can tell, ice is a very bad issue to have for your gutters.
For many people, the first instinct is to grab a hammer or axe and try to chop it away. This is NOT a good idea, as it will very likely cause much more serious issues down the road. In fact, a lot of the solutions you’ll find online are actually more likely to cause problems than they are useful.
According to many professionals, the only real, totally safe, incredibly effective way of solving this icy issue is to hire a gutter professional to use a steam technique that will melt all of the ice away. Or, as a preventative measure, some professionals recommend a heated panel system that will melt ice away before it has a chance to build up.
Of course, there are still other options. The first is probably the most frustrating: waiting it out. If it isn’t a totally serious issue, it’s worth waiting to see if the ice melts on its own. We know, we know – you came here for how to melt it off. Don’t worry, we have a couple ideas for that as well.
Some homeowners like to use their own heated water. This involves hooking up a hose to the hot water valve in the washer room and using that water to melt the ice off. We don’t totally recommend this, but if you’re in a jam and really need the ice melted, it would certainly work. Just be extremely careful handling hot water, especially while on a ladder.
Another, safer method is to use what’s known as a Dzroof rake.dz This is basically a curved rake that lets you get to angles from the ground that you normally wouldn’t have access to. As long as you’re careful, you can knock away some of the top layers of the ice and allow it to melt faster. This will still take a bit of patience but it will certainly speed the process up in a safe, easy way.
If you’re looking the quickest, safest, and most efficient way, we recommend hiring a professional like GutterPros to come and do it for you. Call today to learn how we can clean your gutters and melt your stress away!