Winter and water damage

January 5th, 2018

Water damage and winter

Many people have had lots to look at lately when it came to ice build up, especially If you were anywhere near the Fraser Valley. We were fortunate that it’s not the same deep freeze that the rest of the country was experiencing.

While the freezing rain brought down trees and power lines and made driving conditions dangerous, it also threatened the eaves troughs on buildings and perimeter drains. A prolonged freeze makes it difficult to remove any remaining water from these areas. When there is a sudden warming period, you may be facing ice damming in your eaves troughs where water can back up into your soffits and enter your home, causing extensive damage. You may even find your eaves troughs and soffits being pushed away from the house with the weight of the ice.

When the weather permits it is recommended that you check the eaves for blockage such as old leaves that can trap water and allow ice build up. The same thing goes for any exterior drains around your home.

It may be too late for this advice but if damage has not yet occurred, remove any hoses from exterior hose bibs. You don’t necessarily have to open the taps once the interior water source has been shut off since many newer homes have specialized self-draining outlets where the closing mechanism is located inside your house wall and not exposed the elements.

Even a quick visual external inspection of your home can help prevent future water related damage. Look for excessive ice buildup as clues to water accumulation.

On a beautiful sunny winter day its great to be outside anyway!

Don’t forget to look up for any possibly dangerous ice hanging from trees or broken branches that could come down on you at any time.