How to De-Ice House Eaves
Ice buildup on the eaves of your roof can cause water to back up and leak down through the shingles, possibly leading to water damage inside your home. Ice can also break and cause damage to people and property below. It's dangerous to climb up on the roof and push ice from the eaves, plus the force could damage shingles. Instead, use what is known as an ice melt sleeve to cut through the buildup. A commercial ice melt sleeve or sock is a 3- to 6-foot-long tube of porous fabric, such as nylon, that concentrates the ice melt on the blocks of ice. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Fill the ice melt sleeve with ice melt and tie the end securely. Use a noncorrosive ice melt, such as calcium magnesium acetate.
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Tie a rope to the end of the ice melt sleeve.
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Toss the ice melt sleeve onto the roof far above the icy eaves.
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Pull the rope to position the ice melt sleeve so that it falls over the ridge of ice on the eaves. Leave the ice melt sleeve in place for about 30 to 60 minutes to allow it to melt a groove into the ice.
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Reposition the ice melt sleeve onto another part of the roof ice and repeat until all the ice is significantly reduced.
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Tips & Warnings
Use several ice melt sleeves at once to speed up the melting process.
Make your own ice melt sleeve using a leg from old pantyhose and a wire tie. Simply cut the leg off the pantyhose and fill it with ice melt. Tie the end in a knot, and then reinforce it with a wire tie. Attach the rope to the tied end and use it as you would a commercial ice melt sleeve.
Never stand underneath icy eaves while you are de-icing.
Don't use rock salt on the roof — it is too corrosive.
References
- Photo Credit Goodshoot/Goodshoot/Getty Images
