How to Fix a Leaking Roof With Ice Damage

Locating a roof leak requires patience.

A leaking roof is a structural hazard that requires immediate attention. Roof leaks occur when warm air in the attic heats up the ice directly above, causing it to melt. Because the portions of the roof that extend beyond the attic remain frozen, the melted ice fails to flow down and finds an inlet through loose, broken or damaged shingles, dripping through the gaps inside. While calling a professional is generally necessary if a large portion of your roof leaks, there are a few steps you can take to control the problem and prevent it from worsening.

Things You'll Need

• Stepladder
• Flashlight
• Hose (optional)
• Towel
• Caulk gun
• Silicone caulk
• Putty knife
• Pry bar
• Replacement shingle
• Roofing nails
• Hammer
• Cement

Instructions

1. Inspect your roof thoroughly to locate the exact spot where it leaks. Search for damaged, chipped or missing shingles that provide an inlet for accumulated water. Make a note of the location.

2. Go to your attic and find the spot behind the damaged or missing shingles. Use a flashlight to look for clues, such as a damp trail or dripping water. If you fail to locate the leak, assign a helper to hose down the roof while you determine the exact spot where it drips inside.

3. Wipe the wet surface dry with a towel. Insert silicone caulk into a caulking gun. Insert caulk into the gaps through which water leaks.

4. Climb back up to your roof. Slide a putty knife under the lower edge of the roof shingle that rests above the broken or chipped shingle. Pry up the shingle gently with a pry bar to loosen the seal. Do not pry too hard or you could loosen this shingle and the damaged one directly below.

5. Remove the nails holding the damaged shingle to loosen it. Gently pull the damaged shingle out and set it aside. Wipe the exposed roof surface with a cloth.

6. Slide the replacement shingle into the gap and insert a nail through each corner. Cover the nails with roofing cement.

7. Spread roofing cement over the inner edge of the shingle directly above the one you replaced. Press this shingle down so the glue adheres to the replacement shingle, forming a seal.

Tips & Warnings

• Melting sections of accumulated ice on the roof provide channels for melted ice to drain. Fill a panty hose with calcium chloride pellets and lay it perpendicular to the edge of the roof, directly over the ice on the roof, so it overhangs a gutter. The calcium chloride melts the ice.

• Set a box fan in the attic and position it so the flow of air falls on the point in the roof where the water leaks. Switch the fan on the highest setting so it circulates cold air over the roof at the point of the leak and freezes the water.

References

• University of Minnesota Extension: Ice Dams
• Mother Earth News: There's a Hole In My Roof
• This Old House: Quick Ice Dam Cure