As beautiful as they may appear, icicles hanging from your roof can mean trouble. Having icicles hanging from your roof increases the risk of ice dams. This indicates a warmer roof deck due to breaches in your attic insulation. The snow melts more slowly at the edges of the roof (over the eaves) than the main surface area over the living quarters. This frozen ice and snow backs water up under shingles and wets the roof sheathing and rafters. Ice dams are thick slabs of ice that form around your home’s eaves and block water flow from your roof. They are formed when heat collects in your home’s attic but not in or around the edges of your roof where the eaves are located. Snow then melts in the center of your heated roof, drips down to your gutters, and then freezes on the cold eaves. This ice accumulates on your home’s eaves forming dams. The creation of these ice dams can build up enough to block your attic’s ventilation, forming a perfect breeding ground for mold. If you notice a heavy accumulation of icicles hanging from your roof, it may mean that you need to check for ice dams and maybe even have some mold testing done to assess the indoor air quality of your home.
The high amount of condensation combined with the heat inside your attic can eventually produce a great deal of humidity. This environment easily lends itself to the formation of mold. If left untreated, not only can this make for poor indoor air quality but it can also cause structural damage to your home’s roof, framing, and insulation. All of these can be factors that contribute to the overall poor indoor air quality of your home.
What to Look For
We recommend that you check your attic for mold damage to see if your home will require professional air quality testing in Massachusetts. Look for excessive moisture on the rafters and wood decking in your attic. Check for rust build up around nails protruding from your roof deck to ensure that there are no leaks in your roof. Do everything that you can to make sure that your attic is well ventilated so that humid moisture can escape into the outdoors rather than simmer inside your attic.
Use a flashlight to inspect your attic for mold growth. It may grow in fuzzy patches of green, black, grey, or white. If you come across any mold inside your attic, you’ll want to get some professional mold testing done to assess the indoor air quality of your home. This way, you’ll keep you and your family in a safer, healthier, and cozier environment.
If your home or office needs some professional mold testing, contact us at: (888)-291-3773