Gutter advice sought

[Steve B]

I just removed gutter from one side of my cabin to install a new metal roof. The gutter was hanging on that 35' side, and ice dams that stayed all winter were soaking the fascia board.

I now am going to make hangers that extend up to the rafter truss ends to support the weight of the gutter and ensuing ice buildup.

My question: I want to put heating strips on the two 35' runs of gutters I am going to install. I don't see any other way except letting the ice dams sit there, and that can be substantial weight hanging there. I am a welder, and can make quality 1" x 1" hanging supports that will drill into the rafters on one side, and the roof beams on the other. They WILL support the weight, but I anticipate that when the gutters get full, it will start melting into the fascia which is what I want to avoid. Not a big problem about leaves, as the gutters are high up where few leaves blow in.

Does anyone here use heat strips in their gutters? Any tips or advice appreciated.

Steve

[Jim McLaughlin]

Saturday last week on an "Ask This Old House" that was running on A&E at

09:00 - 10:00 am I saw the folks playing the "What is this?" game.

They had a black looking fabric tube about 6 inches in diameter and about 4 feet which wast was filled with something . Best guess was a floor / door air blocker.

But whaat it was was a tube of crystal de - icer of some type to throw up on the roof where ice dams form. Idea was that the de icer leached from the tube and melted the ice dams.

I have never used the item so I have no idea if its effective.

Some thing to think about, though in terms of getting the ice melted.

[Paul Franklin]

I used them long ago. They worked fine, but can be expensive to run, especially if you're not there to turn them on and off. Generally you have to zig-zag them up onto the roof too, to make channels in the ice for water to flow, and down the downspouts as well.

Any chance of adding insulation and ventilation to prevent the ice dams? Generally they are caused by heat from inside melting snow on the roof, which then refreezes at night and the cycle repeats until everything is clogged with ice. If you can keep the roof cold by blocking heat loss from below or improving ventilation under the roof, you can usually minimize the problem.

HTH,

Paul

[Steve B]

"Paul Franklin" wrote

I would have them set to timers, as we are not there through the winter. When we visit, I can kick them on and let them melt what they can.

Generally you

Sounds good.

Nah. The roof is a sandwich of a layer of wood, a layer of styrofoam with foil insulation, then the metal roofing material. I will have to see how the snow behaves on the new metal roof. The other was shingles. I probably need to position the gutter precisely under the overhang so that falling sheets of snow and ice fall completely off the roof, and not merely land in the gutter. That would lessen the amount in the gutter. Yet, it would have to be positioned so that it would catch the good summer thunderstorms we have. Just have to fool with it during installation.

Steve