How to Melt Ice Off the Roof of My House

Icicles may be pretty, but ice that gathers on your roof can mean danger.

If you don't have proper insulation, sealing and ventilation in your attic area, it's possible for excess ice from a winter storm to gather around the bottom of your roof and create an ice dam. Ice dams can cause damage to your roof because the gutters become blocked and the water has no way to flow off your roof as the ice melts naturally, which puts extra weight on the roof. If you'd like to melt the ice off your roof, create a simple homemade deicing tool.

Things You'll Need

• Pantyhose
• Scissors
• Calcium chloride deicer
• Ladder
• Rake

Instructions

1. Cut the legs off a pair of pantyhose with scissors.

2. Fill each pantyhose leg with a calcium chloride deicer, found in home improvement and hardware stores.

3. Knot the open end of each pantyhose leg.

4. Access your roof with a ladder. Lay the filled pantyhose legs directly over the top of any ice dams so they can melt and allow water to flow off the roof like normal. If you can't easily reach the area you'd like to deice, use a rake to push the pantyhose in place.

Tips & Warnings

• Attempting to climb on an icy roof may result in a fall.

References

• This Old House: Quick Ice Dam Cure
• University of Minnesota: Ice Dams