In all the houses we've lived in one of the things Richard and I never experienced is an ice dam on our roof. We have, however, seen massive damage in and on our neighbors homes from ice dams. An ice dam is when snow falls, then rain or sleet and then it freezes into ice. Its usually followed by more snow and freezing, building up thick sheets of ice under snow. Both the weight and the melting of the ice can cause damage. Structural and foundation damage happen from the weight. Water damage happens when the melting ice finds cracks, seeps beneath roof shingles into framing and on interior walls and floors. The roofing industry has a simple solution for this problem. A special underlayment membrane that goes completely around the edge of the roof enhancing water-shedding capabilities. Although where we live usually only gets a few inches of snow a year occasionally, like last year, we get enough to form ice dams. So, Richard and I chose to pay a little extra money and have the underlayment membrane installed to prevent future damage. The roofers assured us we wouldn't be sorry!



The shiny black underlayment membrane is visible up the sides of the roof. It was also installed front and back under the felt and shingles already applied. It was so hot that the membrane immediately adhered to the roof.



Almost complete. The ridge vent hasn't been installed yet. The foam pieces on the right roof are there to aid the roofers in keeping balance and not damaging shingles. They walk on the foam as they exert pressure with tools rather than the newly shingled roof.



Another view of the shingled roof.