Winter Roof Maintenance: Exclusive Advice from Canadian Insurers

While Torontonians appreciate the picturesque white look of snow that the city brings after a long summer, snowfalls create difficult situations for homeowners, especially with the need to maintain a roof. However, winter snow affects different roofing materials such as asphalt shingles, metal, solar panels and flat roofs differently. The main concerns include:

• the additional weight burden, which can cause structural strain, 
• increased leakage risks, and compromised performance of the roofing system. 

Of these, asphalt shingle roofs are perhaps the worst because their material is prone to puncture and because of the depressed profiles of shingles, a curled or sagging shingle can increase the odds of the next leaky winter storm. During the long winter, the higher frequency of ice dam claims are on the insurers’ radar and whether or not homeowners make a timely effort to keep a roof sound and dry can affect the reimbursement a homeowner might get.

How to Help Prevent Ice Dams on Your Roof

Keeping your roof free of ice dams during winter is also important in order to protect the integrity of your home. Ice dams are formed when large waves of ice form along the very edge of a roof, preventing properly draining runoff from melting snow. This can cause water to seep through the shingles beneath the roof and eventually compromise your ceiling, walls, and insulation.

Address this risk by: 

• Insulate your attic, where the greatest heat loss from the living space below occurs and causes snow on the roof to melt unevenly.Air seal along light fixtures, vent pipes and along the shaft of your chimney to cut off warm air that infiltrates the roof and can trigger the start of an ice dam. 
• Boosting attic ventilation is important, too – it’ll help to keep the roof at a constant temperature, so it doesn’t go through the melting and refreezing effect that leads to ice dams in the first place. 
• A water-repellent membrane would prevent water from penetrating underneath the surface of the roofing.
• Clear gutters and downspouts regularly but make sure pipes are directed away from the building. 
• When crisp, white snow falls, keep it removed from your roof to prevent ice dams from forming. Residents of snowy regions should regularly dig snow off the roof – particularly from the gutter areas.

In the event that ice dams do form in spite of these precautions, it’s essential that they be removed immediately to prevent water from backing up beneath the shingles and entering the home. Homeowners who take these steps are largely protecting themselves and their property from ice damming and the resultant water damage.

Winter metal roof care and tips

Metal roofing is a great alternative for homeowners who live in areas where it frequently snows heavily, because it will last for years and there will only be very little maintenance needed over the life of the roofing material. Metal roofing often has a smooth surface that will shrug off snow and ice. This will keep you from having snow and ice pile up, which can lead to ice dams and the resulting water damage.

But as well as shedding snow, metal roofs can often cause another danger: rapid release of large amounts of snow, which are a risk to those on or beneath them and any attached structures. Injury and damage to gutters, landscaping and adjacent areas threaten when snow and ice falls rapidly. This is where snow guards come into play. Typically installed by King Metal Roofing, snow guards are devices that effectively break up snow as it melts and allows it to descend in small, more manageable waves, rather than unstable avalanches. By regulating the descent of the snow and ice, free-flowing snow guards keep the risks caused by the heaviest of snowfalls mainly in check.  

Lastly, and most significantly in regards to winter care, de-icing salts during this season should be used with caution, as they will indeed melt away ice, but by the same token expedite the corrosion of metal components, ultimately undermining the integrity of the roof as well as its appearance. Alternative ways of de-icing or at least some products built on metal-roof-friendly technology might be considered instead.

Be aware of the insurance conditions

In northern Ontario during the winter period, snowfalls often result in an increased number of weather damage claims for insurance companies. Due to these difficulties, insurance companies recommend that homeowners check the condition of the roof regularly and follow a rigorous maintenance programme.

Recommended actions include clearing snow from roofs and maintaining unobstructed flow of water from gutters and downspouts.

Such pre-emptive measures also reflect the desire to protect the contents of the house, since although insurance is a safety net against unforeseen calamities, it imposes responsibility on the homeowner. 

The reliance on insurance as a fallback can sometimes lead to unpleasant surprises for policyholders, especially when they discover that their coverage does not extend to certain winter-related damages.  

Pete Karageorgos, speaking to CBC.ca as the Director of Consumer & Industry Relations for the Insurance Bureau of Canada, emphasizes the importance of homeowners engaging with their insurance representatives. This interaction ensures that homeowners are fully informed about the specifics of their coverage, including what types of damage are covered and under what circumstances. Karageorgos’s advice serves as a crucial reminder that the fine print of insurance contracts can spell the difference between comprehensive protection and out-of-pocket repairs. 

Therefore, understanding the scope of one’s insurance coverage before disaster strikes is not just advisable but essential. It positions homeowners to take preemptive actions to protect their property and belongings, backed by the knowledge that their insurance will step in when necessary, within the defined parameters of their policy.

10 Tips for Safely Removing Snow from Your Roof

One of the most important winter maintenance tasks is the removal of snow from your roof. If not done properly, it can lead to damage to your home.

1. Go with someone else: Never head out on a hike all by yourself. At the very least, you’ll have someone to help you track safety or manage your equipment. At the very most, they can call for help if and when you meet an unfortunate end. 
2. Winter-weather wear: insulated, waterproof clothes should be worn to guard against the cold and wet weather.
3. Install snow guards, which help control snowfall and can limit large, dangerous sloughs of snow.
4. Go on your roof only as a last resort. If possible, stay on the ground and use tools that let you remove snow without going up on your roof.
5. Keep off your pitched roof: Climbing on a pitched roof covered in snow is very dangerous. 
6. Leave at least 10 cm (4 inches) of snow on your roof: Removing all the snow from your roof will make it impossible for future snow to melt and flow naturally because you removed all the paths in the ice through which snow melting on the surface can flow into the drainage channels on the façade. Do not pack the snow on your roof to eliminate all of its surface friction. In such a case, melt water will remain on the roof, run down the fasade, get into the cracks on curtain walls, and damage the underlying protective layers. 
7. No Sharp Tools: Use a wooden or plastic shovel instead for shovelling snow as metal can scrape or puncture the roof covering.
8. Watch for Falling Snow and Icicles: it can be hazardous to anyone below.
9. Don’t Ever Shovel Snow by Hand: Your roof is not a frying pan.
10. Watch Measurements of Snow Depths: Best practices recommend removing snow when it gets to a depth greater than 20 cm (8 inches) in thickness to lessen excess weight and pressure on your roof structure.

Perhaps, most important, if you follow these tips, ladders, buckets and your house will all survive the winter intact. Always prioritize on the side of safety and if you feel like you’re venturing into that grey area where every choice seems a bad one, dial a professional service that is experienced in roof maintenance.

Conclusions

Winter roof maintenance and the steps that homeowners in northern Ontario and other cold-weather areas can take to reduce the risk of winter damage. From practical maintenance tips for snow removal from roofs to how insurance works to provide a safety net if things go wrong, the bottom line is that prevention is the best mitigator of risk. Regular inspections, maintenance and a firm understanding of insurance coverage are key to keeping our homes safe from the ravages of winter. With these techniques, and the right insurance protection, we can go about our winter life with peace of mind.