# Ice and snow tearing gutters off



## multitasker (Jan 14, 2009)

We have had a real crappy time of the weather in the west.First it snowed heavy but it was only 32 F and it started to melt.Then went to 12F and froze solid.Next we got 3 dumps of 6 inches of snow and then 4inches of heavy wet snow .Now its warmed up but realy damp and foggey.An ice layer had built up in all gutters and on the roofs ,down spouts froze and flat roofs flooded.Any roof with tile or metal now has severly damaged flashings and gutters.In fact in a few instances the snow breaks have been ripped out of roofs as well as any B vent chimneys .My question is on tile or metal roofs is there a better way to install gutters so the ice slides off without tearing of the gutter ..I have looked at fixatech continuose hangers but worry that the weight of water and ice in this will still be exterme .Just wondering the best root to take in case this is the weather we are gonna get in the future.


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## Patrick (Apr 12, 2006)

multitasker said:


> We have had a real crappy time of the weather in the west.First it snowed heavy but it was only 32 F and it started to melt.Then went to 12F and froze solid.Next we got 3 dumps of 6 inches of snow and then 4inches of heavy wet snow .Now its warmed up but realy damp and foggey.An ice layer had built up in all gutters and on the roofs ,down spouts froze and flat roofs flooded.Any roof with tile or metal now has severly damaged flashings and gutters.In fact in a few instances the snow breaks have been ripped out of roofs as well as any B vent chimneys .My question is on tile or metal roofs is there a better way to install gutters so the ice slides off without tearing of the gutter ..I have looked at fixatech continuose hangers but worry that the weight of water and ice in this will still be exterme .Just wondering the best root to take in case this is the weather we are gonna get in the future.


On slate roofs we:

A) Offer no warranty on our gutters
B)Mount them a little lower so hopefully snow falling off will miss the gutter
c) they also make things you can add to the roof to break up the snow as it slides down the roof


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## MALCO.New.York (Feb 27, 2008)

^^^^ "C" ^^^^ Snow Brake or Snow Guard.

http://www.amerimax.com/catalog/pdfs/pgs%2088-89.pdf










http://www.slateandcopper.com/snow-guard-index.php


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## nlgutters (Dec 18, 2007)

Probably half are roofs are metal or slate. You have to put some sort of gutter helmet or solid gutter cover on them. Once you do this the snow can't grab the front lip of the gutter. If you do that you will never have one rip off again. And you wont get the snow and ice building up inj the gutter making the ice dams worse.


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## mrmike (Dec 9, 2008)

Gutters are a pain in the butt up here in the north-even the seamless ones. Many people struggle with them until they give up and remove them. I get calls for spigots & vent pipes, etc. busted off-even inside of the wall because of the force of the ice that is built up on the gutter & then gives way under the weight of it. I know of one person that it did this & busted off his gas regulator to his 100 gal propane tank & lost it all........... I have tried gutters myself even on un-heated buildings with the same results-its Siberia up here, -30 degrees this morning-brrrrr-More coffee this morn & good beer this afternoon-


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## AAA Gutter (Nov 23, 2006)

On metal roofs in snow country we try to put the lip of the gutter 1" below the fall line of the roof.

That way, when the ice slides off, it slides over the gutter (hopefully).:thumbup:

Also, a snow rail or snow stops will hold the snow on the roof until it melts, because you can't have snow cascading off the roof over the front door, driveway etc.


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## Tom Struble (Mar 2, 2007)

sometimes you need more than i row of ice guards or snow fence.
The solid cover leaf guards do work to keep the gutter clear of ice


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## Jake Stevens (Dec 10, 2007)

nlgutters said:


> Probably half are roofs are metal or slate. You have to put some sort of gutter helmet or solid gutter cover on them. Once you do this the snow can't grab the front lip of the gutter. If you do that you will never have one rip off again. And you wont get the snow and ice building up inj the gutter making the ice dams worse.


This is the only way we will install gutter with a metal roof.

We use Gutter Topper


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## AAA Gutter (Nov 23, 2006)

Jake Stevens said:


> This is the only way we will install gutter with a metal roof.
> 
> We use Gutter Topper


 
What do you do to stop cascading snow over doors and driveways?

Gutter covers will keep ice out of the gutter, but do they help with ice dams or sliding snow?


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## Tom Struble (Mar 2, 2007)

snow fence or ice gaurds the ice will tend to slide off soild gutter gaurds they might work better in a dark color


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## Jake Stevens (Dec 10, 2007)

AAA Gutter said:


> What do you do to stop cascading snow over doors and driveways?
> 
> Gutter covers will keep ice out of the gutter, but do they help with ice dams or sliding snow?


 
We use snow breaks over doors and bay windows.


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## mickeyers (Nov 2, 2009)

*Snowgutters will solve the issue.*

Snowgutters will solve the problem. snowgutters.com . Just need a distributor in the USA.



multitasker said:


> We have had a real crappy time of the weather in the west.First it snowed heavy but it was only 32 F and it started to melt.Then went to 12F and froze solid.Next we got 3 dumps of 6 inches of snow and then 4inches of heavy wet snow .Now its warmed up but realy damp and foggey.An ice layer had built up in all gutters and on the roofs ,down spouts froze and flat roofs flooded.Any roof with tile or metal now has severly damaged flashings and gutters.In fact in a few instances the snow breaks have been ripped out of roofs as well as any B vent chimneys .My question is on tile or metal roofs is there a better way to install gutters so the ice slides off without tearing of the gutter ..I have looked at fixatech continuose hangers but worry that the weight of water and ice in this will still be exterme .Just wondering the best root to take in case this is the weather we are gonna get in the future.


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## Capital Gutters (Jun 10, 2010)

For pole building and warehouses, we attach the gutters to the roof with a roof strap and 1 1/2" screws rather than into the fascia. We then screw the roof strap to the front lip of the gutter with a 1/2" screw. The weight of the ice is then sliding over the 1 1/2" screws rather than against them to force them out of the fascia.
Madison Gutters 
Madison Gutter Guards


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## Capital Gutters (Jun 10, 2010)

> Snowgutters will solve the problem. snowgutters.com .


These guys need to improve their website-lots of flash but difficult to tell how the product works or installs.
Madison Gutters 
Madison Gutter Guards


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## tinner666 (Nov 3, 2004)

http://www.albertsroofing.com/SnowGuard%20Installation.htm


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