How Ice Dams Cause Damage to Your Home

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We’ve had quite the winter so far here in Coastal Maine and the Portland area. With a constant fluctuation in temperatures, many homeowners are experiencing icicles, known as ice dams, on their gutters. Ice dams can not only be difficult to remove, but unfortunately, they can cause severe damage to your home as well. 

At Evergreen Home Performance, we understand how frustrating it can be to deal with ice dams, especially on top of all the other winter maintenance your home needs. Luckily, we can solve the issue with our comprehensive insulation and air sealing services. 

What Causes Ice Dams?

Ice dams occur when heat escapes from your attic and prematurely melts snow that has accumulated on your roof. As the snow melt flows to the eaves, or edges of your roof, it will then refreeze and create a blockage that prevents water from draining properly from your gutters. 

How Ice Dams Lead to Damage

When ice dams accumulate on your drip edge or gutters, the water from snowmelt will have nowhere left to go and can back up underneath your roofing and leak inside your home. This can lead to numerous problems for your home health and structure, such as:

  • Roof damage & leaks

  • Broken gutters

  • Wet & damaged insulation

  • Moisture & mold growth

  • Sagged ceilings

  • Wood rot 

  • Stained drywall or plaster

  • Peeling paint

The icicles on your gutters can also cause damage to HVAC equipment or parked cars outside of your home and even pose a fall risk to people walking by.  

Ice Dam Prevention with Air Sealing & Insulation

Removing ice dams after they have formed can be both difficult and dangerous. Luckily, Evergreen Home Performance can help you prevent ice dams at the source with air sealing and attic insulation. Air sealing helps to stop warm air from escaping your home while insulation helps prevent heat transfer. 

These two essential services work together to stop the snow from unevenly melting on your roof and come with many whole-home benefits, including:

  • Lower heating & cooling costs

  • More consistent temperatures

  • Improved indoor air quality

  • No more hot attics in the summer 

Find Reliable Ice Dam Solutions with Evergreen Home Performance

To find the most accurate and reliable ice dam solutions for your home, we recommend getting started with a free consult or an energy audit. This crucial step allows our team to pinpoint exactly where attic insulation and air sealing is needed to prevent heat from escaping out your roof and causing ice dams to form. Insulation and air sealing are also eligible for several incentives in Coastal Maine and Portland, like rebates from Efficiency Maine.

Evergreen Home Performance has been helping homeowners in our community with their home efficiency needs for nearly 20 years. We have extensive knowledge of building science principles that aid our team to find the right insulation type for your home’s specific needs and make sure it’s installed correctly. Don’t just deal with ice dams every winter, solve them for good with Evergreen Home Performance.

Get started with ice dam prevention for your home today. Call 207-594-2244 or contact us online to get started.

Icicles on your roof?

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Nothing but good things to say. The guys that came and did the actual work were extremely nice and did a great job. The energy audit was thorough and I was presented with multiple improvement options, I was even given ideas for improvement that Evergreen didn't offer. I never felt like I was being "sold".

Ryan Adams

Evergreen did an amazing job insulating our historic home. Their professional staff worked hard to ensure the tough areas in the attic were covered, and clearly communicated their progress. We are seeing the results with our discounted heating bills. Thank you, Evergreen!

Melissa Knoll

Portland

The Evergreen crew from initial inception to installation were professional, on time, and left our place spotless. The end result was exceptional.

John Brown

Evergreen was so helpful in securing us Efficiency Maine funding for a big attic insulation project early this winter. They did all of the paperwork, and totally guided us through a vermiculite removal process that included a payment from a trust for the procedure. I could instantly feel the second floor being so much warmer than before. The boiler does not kick on nearly as frequently since they completed the job. It was worth every penny! Brian Robinson was so thorough throughout the whole process including a full walk through after the job had been completed.

Todd W.

Camden

I used to spend winters in the bathtub because my house was so cold. This was my first winter roaming around my whole house comfortably. This even led me to decorate a little. My heating oil usage has been reduced by over a quarter: I rarely have to boost the thermostat because the temp stays at a constant. The Efficiency Maine rebates, together with the energy savings, make it affordable for me to pay for the loan I took out to finance the project. I do not worry about my pipes freezing.

Claire Helene Bevan

Camden

We are so pleased with the work the team from Evergreen Home Performance did in our home. The project included encapsulation of our basement with a reinforced vapor barrier, installation of a sump pump, spray foam insulation on the walls and insulation of the heating duct work. Everyone at Evergreen was friendly and professional. The project was completed on time and in budget. Our home is much cozier and warmer since the project was completed.

Linda Metzger

This team of individuals was professional at all times. They set up barriers that kept the dust at a minimum. They conducted an air flow audit and cut the draft circulation from the outside in half by sealing cracks. They hauled out the old insulation and replaced it with blown in insulation with an R - 60 Value. They also did the rebate paperwork so that I could get my $1500.00 rebate from the state of Maine. I highly recommend Evergreen Home Performance!

Daniel B.

Rockland

Evergreen did everything they said they would and more. I actually don't mind going into the basement now since they sealed it. The air quality in the house is noticeably better and it's warmer in the winter. We can even store clothing down there where before, whatever was in there would mildew. Even the spider population declined! I used to vacuum so many of them from the corners of the ceilings in the house. Not any more!

Loriel Van Dusen

We are thrilled with the job Evergreen did to transform our 213 year old home into a warm, draft-free, cozy space. The entire team led by Bruce was prompt, courteous, knowledgeable, and hard working. If Evergreen could transform our home in this way, we are sure they would make a comparable difference in YOUR home!

Jonathan M.

Bridgton

We absolutely loved our experience with Evergreen. The team was incredibly kind, professional and great to work with. We're very impressed with the quality of work of the Evergreen team and how easy they made everything! Our house had barely any insulation ahead of this project and the results are amazing. Insulating the attic, walls and basement with Evergreen allowed us to tear a 50-year-old furnace, ductwork and oil tank out of the basement and now heat the home with new heat pumps. Evergreen also added 100 sq ft of clean, new storage space to the attic!

Nick S.

South Portland

We had Evergreen come out to our tiny old (100+ year old) house to see what they would recommend for decreasing our carbon footprint, saving money, and increasing our comfort in the cold season. Richard and Bryan were great to work with, patiently answering our many questions and walking us through multiple options. We could only afford to tackle a few areas this year; we ended up replacing some windows and having them weatherize the entire house.

Alan M.

Falmouth

Evergreen did a fantastic job replacing 28 windows in our house. They were friendly, courteous, and very detail oriented. Brian did a great job planning, estimating and executing the project. Our energy use has dropped significantly since the work was done.

Alex B.

Kittery

From start to finish, our experience was incredible. Justin was extremely helpful. The crew was fast, friendly, and efficient. And most importantly, our home is WAY warmer and our heating is less costly. I'd highly recommend evergreen to anyone looking to upgrade their home!

John S.

South Portland

Evergreen Home Performance shows its expertise from start to finish. Evergreen did three house projects in winter/spring/summer 2020 for me, attic insulation, crawl space under a porch insulation, and basement foam/vapor barrier. From my initial discussion with Bryan, I understood the reasons for choosing different types of insulation, the associated costs, and time estimates. Evergreen scheduled in advance, came when they said they would, and the crews were highly professional in their work and demeanor.

Iris S.

Portland

I never leave reviews, but had a great experience with Evergreen and wanted to spread the word! In short, we worked with them to insulate our roof this winter and have noticed surprising immediate results. The constant ice dams I have wrestled with are completely gone, and the home is noticeably more comfortable. It's a little too early to tell if our oil bill is going to reduce, but I imagine we will see an impact there as well.

Joel W.

Portland

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Portland Buy Local
Efficiency Maine
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Building Performance Association
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190 Riverside St, #2A,
Portland, ME 04103

315 Main Street, #205,
Rockland, ME 04841

207-358-3706

info@evergreenyourhome.com