Ice and snow on Stow roofs: a secondary snowbelt guide

Stow sits in Northeast Ohio's secondary snowbelt. It is not the deep-snow country along the lake, but it gets more winter than the towns an hour south. The Akron and Canton area averages about 47 inches of snow in a season, and the cold runs from November into March with thaws in between. The city's own residential permit guide lists a ground snow load of 20 pounds per square foot and rates local weathering as severe. All of that lands on your shingles. Here is what it does, what to watch for, and when a roof repair in Stow is the right call.

What does the secondary snowbelt mean for a roof?

It means the roof spends more of the winter wet. Lake-effect bands off Lake Erie reach inland in bursts, drop a few inches and move on. Then the top layer melts in the sun and refreezes overnight. Snow depth is rarely the problem. The repeated melting and refreezing is.

How does an ice dam form?

An ice dam needs three things: snow on the roof, heat leaking from the house into the attic, and a cold roof edge.

1. Warm air from the living space leaks into the attic and warms the underside of the roof deck.
2. Snow on the upper roof melts from below, even when the air outside is well under freezing.
3. Meltwater runs down under the snow until it reaches the overhang, which has no warm attic beneath it.
4. The water freezes there. Each day adds a little more, and a ridge of ice builds along the eave.
5. Water pools behind the ridge. Shingles are made to shed water running downhill, not water standing still, so it works up under them.

The sign inside is a stain or drip near an outside wall, often days after the snowfall, during a thaw.

Which Stow houses get ice dams most?

The 1960s ranches on streets like Call Road and Lynnwood Drive have wide overhangs, which means a long cold edge. Many were built with thin attic insulation and only small gable vents. The 1970s and 1980s bi-levels have low attics that trap heat, plus a valley where the garage meets the house that collects drifted snow. The 1990s colonials in Quail Highlands and Eastwicke Farms have valleys under every front gable, and a north-facing gable can stay frozen for weeks.

What does ice and water shield do?

It is a self-adhering membrane that sticks to the deck under the shingles and seals around every nail driven through it. Code in cold climates calls for it along the eaves, reaching at least 24 inches inside the line of the outside wall. Every roof replacement here also puts it in the valleys. It does not stop an ice dam from forming. It stops the water behind the dam from reaching the wood.

What should you do while snow is on the roof?

• Leave the hammer and the shovel in the garage. Chipping cracks cold shingles long before the ice gives way.
• Do not spread rock salt on the roof. It stains, corrodes flashing and kills the plants below.
• A roof rake used from the ground can pull snow off the lowest three or four feet. Less snow at the edge means less meltwater feeding the ice.
• Keep the attic hatch shut tight and bath fans off when not needed, to cut the warm air going up.
• Photograph any stain with a date, and put a bucket under an active drip.

What fixes the cause before next winter?

A cold, even roof. That takes three things working together: air sealing so warm air stays out of the attic, enough insulation on the attic floor, and ventilation that brings outside air in at the soffits and lets it out at the ridge. Bath fans should vent outdoors, not into the attic. Insulation and air sealing are not roofing work, and this site does not sell them. A ridge vent is roofing work, and it is part of every replacement. The inspection report will say whether the attic looks like the source of the trouble.

Is the weight of snow a worry?

Rarely on a house. Stow's 20 pound ground snow load is the figure local roof framing is designed around. Call someone at once if you see a ridge line that has started to sag, new cracks in upstairs ceilings, or doors that suddenly stick under a heavy, wet snowpack.

When does ice damage need a repair?

When shingles at the eave have been lifted or cracked, when the stain comes back with every thaw, or when the leak is at a valley, a chimney or a skylight and not at the eave at all. Those last three are flashing problems that snow only exposes, and they are covered on the page about skylight and chimney flashing. For the rest, the owner inspects the roof himself once it is safe to walk, sends a photo report the same day, and gives a fixed written price before work starts. See the page on fixing roof leaks in Stow for how that goes. If the report shows the whole roof is worn, a Stow roof replacement with membrane at the eaves and valleys is the lasting answer.