For the first time this winter season, people are facing an issue that could cause damage for homeowners.

Weatherology Meteorologist Jennifer Wojcicki says ice dams have been forming near the edges of roofs and on top of gutters of homes. She explains how these form after a heavy snowfall event that the Raccoon Valley Radio area recently went through.

“Because of the heat that’s in the house that heat raises, so it goes up towards your attic, or the top of your ceiling, wherever your roof is, and it melts that very layer that’s directly against your shingles. Which causes the snow that’s on top of that to kind of slide down. And then when temperatures drop in the overnight hours they re-freeze. And you get through this system that constantly keeps going throughout each day.”  

Wojcicki points out if ice dams occur they can cause damage to a home’s shingles and pull gutters down, due to the weight of some of the dams. She adds homeowners can scrape snow off of the roofs and remove the dams from the gutters before damage can be done.