Winter is a time of year that can bring plenty of joy and cheer. But it can also bring with it some severe damage to your home if you're not careful. Winter weather can wreak havoc on your home if you're unprepared, from heavy snowfall to freezing temperatures and even wild winds.
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Ways Winter Weather Can Damage Your Home
Fortunately, there are several steps you can take to protect your home from the damage winter weather can bring. In this article, you'll learn 8 of the most common ways winter weather can damage your home and the steps you can take to prevent it from happening. So, if you want to keep your home safe and sound throughout the winter season, read on to learn more!
Before winter sets in, it is crucial to hire a professional roofer like Mighty Dog Roofing in Brandon who can thoroughly inspect and reinforce your roof, safeguarding your home from potential leaks, ice dams, and other winter-related damages.
Ice and snow damage to the roof
If you're not careful during winter, ice and snow can build up on your roof and cause serious damage that may lead to a leak. Snow repeatedly falling onto the roof can freeze, melt, and then refreeze, causing a build-up of ice.
If the ice or snow becomes so heavy that the roof can't support it, it can break off and fall to the ground. When this happens, it's likely to cause damage to your roof, as well as the rest of your home. It could also pose a serious risk to anyone nearby, as falling ice is one of the most common causes of death from winter weather.
To prevent this from happening, you should clear your roof of any snow and ice during periods of heavy snowfall. You can do this using a shovel or hire a professional if you have a large roof that's difficult to reach.
Freezing temperatures cause damage to plumbing
Freezing temperatures in winter can be pretty damaging to the plumbing in your home, causing issues like burst pipes, frozen water mains and broken fittings. You can learn more about that when you click here.
If you're not careful and don't take steps to protect your pipes, they could freeze, leading to all kinds of issues. If your pipes freeze, they can burst and cause a considerable amount of damage to your home. In fact, according to estimates, burst pipes and frozen water mains are responsible for $300 million in property damage every year.
To prevent freezing temperatures from causing damage to your plumbing, you'll first want to insulate your main water supply. You can do this by wrapping the pipes in insulation, or you can wrap them in heat tape that's designed for this particular purpose.
You'll also want to ensure that your faucets are on and dripping when temperatures drop below freezing outside or when you expect freezing temperatures. This can help avoid your water freezing by providing it continually moves through the systems and will avoid excessive damage.
Wild winds loosening tiles and loose fittings
Strong winds are another widespread problem during the winter season. While they're certainly not a pleasant sensation, they can also cause severe damage to your home. Strong winds can loosen tiles and other fixtures, such as gutters.
Over time, the tiles and other fixtures on your roof can become loose, but they can break free and fall off entirely during high winds. This can pose a serious risk to anyone who's nearby, as well as cause significant damage to your roof.
Ensure you are aware of the condition of your roof, primarily to ensure there are no loose tiles. You have provided additional security to avoid wind damage to windows and doors from falling tiles or loose shingles.
Rain and flooding your property, home, garage
One of the most dangerous effects of heavy rainfall is flooding. While flooding in your home can happen any time of the year, winter is more common in regions with higher-than-usual rainfall or cases of freak flooding. If there's an extended period of heavy rain, it can cause flooding in your home, garage, or nearby property.
This can lead to significant damage over time, as water can travel through your home and cause all sorts of issues. If there's a significant enough amount of flooding, it can even cause your home to become uninhabitable. To prevent heavy rainfall from causing flooding in your home, make sure you have proper drainage in place.
This can be done in several ways, including optimizing your gutters, installing a rainwater harvesting system, or even putting in a sump pump if you have low-lying areas prone to flooding.
Cold cracks caulk
When the weather is cold, the caulk in your home can become brittle and crack, leading to severe issues, including water damage. Temperatures below 40 degrees Fahrenheit can lead to caulk cracking and becoming brittle, affecting the stability of the window doors and other places you have used caulk in your home.
Check these areas as they can cause massive damage if your windows or doors become unstable, for example. You can avoid this by ensuring your caulk is of good quality and isn't spread too thin to check in slight temperature changes.
Remember, when using caulk outside, it should be thicker than inside to be able to withstand more extreme weather changes. Alternatively, ensure you use a caulk that is designed for use in colder or variable climates.
Ice dams breaking gutters
Ice dams are another common occurrence in colder climates. They happen when the snow on your roof melts and then freezes at the top of your roof, forming ice walls. These ice walls prevent snow and water runoff from leading to a build-up on your roof and in gutters.
These ice walls can eventually break off and fall onto your roof, as well as onto your home and even the ground below. If ice dams are left untreated, they can cause significant damage to your roof, gutter and even your home. To prevent ice dams from forming on your roof and causing damage, consider installing an ice dam system.
An ice dam system is typically installed at the top of your roof and works by diverting the water from the roof, so it doesn't freeze. You can also consult the professionals for ice dam removal services to ensure any build-up is removed quickly, and you can ascertain any level of damage.
Power outages
Power outages can happen anytime, in your house alone or your local area. Residents of Texas are still recovering from the power outage of 2021, which lasted for over two weeks, as the infrastructure was damaged by extreme storms leaving over 4 million homes without power.
Winds, rain, lightning and any other cold weather spell can affect your ability to power your home in different ways, meaning you are at risk of being left without water, heat or electricity until power can be restored. This can have a detrimental effect on all areas of your life, meaning you will need to seek shelter somewhere you can access these services.
Wet weather rots door frames
Last but not least, another common issue caused by wet weather is rotting in door frames. Depending on the severity of the weather, water can seep into cracks in your home and lead to rotting door frames. This can be especially common in the corners of your home, such as the garage or basement.
If your door frames are rotting, it can cause significant damage over time, including the need for expensive repairs or even the need to replace the structure entirely. To prevent wet weather from rotting door frames, ensure proper drainage in your home, particularly in low-lying areas prone to flooding.
You can also install a weather seal on your door to prevent water from getting in.
Preventative steps
Now that you know how winter weather can damage your home, it's time to learn how to prevent it. If you want to keep your home safe and sound throughout the winter season, several steps can be taken to make this possible. These steps include:
- Ensure your roof is adequately insulated
- Clean your gutters and apply a sealant
- Insulate your water pipes
- Keep all faucets dripping when it's cold outside.
- Close your garage door when it's raining
- Install an ice dam system
- Make sure you have a fireplace or other source of heat.
- Close off rooms that aren't in use
- Have a backup generator
- Keep a water supply at home.
- Have emergency kits with blankets, tinned food, water, a first aid kit, batteries, torches, and anything else that will be useful for your family.
These steps will help prevent damage from winter weather, and they can also help protect your home from other events that can damage it, such as storms. With these tips in mind, you'll be able to keep your home safe and sound throughout the winter season.
Conclusion
Winter weather can be a lot of fun, especially if you live in a cold climate. But it can also cause damage to your home if you're not careful. Fortunately, there are several steps you can take to protect your home from the damage winter weather can bring.
This post has some tips to get you started and ensure your home is protected during colder weather.
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