CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, Ohio — It's a lesson in cause and effect that Northeast Ohioans are all too familiar with: heavy periods of snow and extreme cold lead inevitably to massive icicles on their roofs and ice dams. Formations that can be quite picturesque but also quite problematic, and are one of the most common causes of wintertime property damage.
It's what brought Ryan Smith to Northeast Ohio from Rochester, Minnesota.
"It's a little warmer here than what it is in Rochester, actually," Smith said with a smile. "A lot more ice than what I typically see with the amount of snow that there's been."
He's with a company called Ice Dam Guys, and as the name implies, he's a guy who helps get rid of, well, ice dams. We caught up with him Thursday in Cleveland Heights, going to work on a home there, where he explained the process.
"You want to be able to remove the snow off of where the ice is located and then we have a steamer, basically a pressure washer with a tip that's on it that kind of defuses it and makes less pressure. So it's basically just steam coming out, the pressure washer has a boiler on it to heat the water so you're basically up there cutting the ice," Smith said.
Removing chunks at a time without damaging the roof. As for prevention?
"I would say you make sure to keep the bottom four feet of your roof clear, kind of by the gutter area and that will help prevent it. A lot of ice dams are caused by insulation leaks which is not a whole lot you can do on the roof at that point."
It can be an expensive process, but one he said can save you in the long run.
"It can save you from some damages and whatever else might happen with water coming through of if you have a lot of ice hanging off your roof that's a lot of weight. It could rip off your gutters. If you have an awning that it's hanging off of it could rip that awning off."
He's had full days since he arrived that he doesn't expect to lighten up any time soon.
"I'm in town indefinitely as long as there's work here," he said.
