With a string of 50+ Fahrenheit days, the snowpack is melting. As of this morning, I still had an ice dam on the back of the house. Given the temperatures, I expect it to finally be gone in another 24 hours.

While a metal roof is probably the best defense against ice dams, I think having a steeply pitched roof may help avoid the leaks that ice dams can cause. Here’s a link to an interesting article where Steve Scolnik describes his method for clearing ice dams. I did not do anything about mine this year (I need a longer ladder). Fortunately, my ice dam did not cause any leaks; however, I will need to straighten and reattach a gutter.

Ice Dam