Ice Dam and Roof Leak in American Fork, UT

Ice dams form in American Fork during cold winter spells when snow sits on the roof, heat from the house melts the bottom layer, and that water refreezes at the cold eaves. Each sunny afternoon adds more melt behind the ice, and the water backs up under shingles that were made to shed water, not hold it. It soaks the roof deck, runs into the soffit and drips onto attic insulation near the outside walls. Older homes near Main Street that may have thinner attic insulation and newer two-story homes on the west side with complex rooflines can both see it.

In the first hour, melt water wets the roof deck and the insulation along the eaves. By 24 hours, it has soaked down to the ceiling drywall near outside walls and may be running inside the wall cavity, staining paint and wetting window trim. By 48 hours, the wet insulation is compressed and mold can start on drywall paper, the roof deck and framing. After a week of freeze and thaw, ceilings may sag, exterior wall insulation is soaked and the water can reach the floor below.

Ice dam water is usually clean melt, so more can often be dried in place than with outside flood water. Ceiling drywall that is stained but still firm can often stay, with air pushed across it and dehumidifiers drying the room and the attic above. Roof decking that got wet near the eaves usually dries once the ice is relieved and the attic is ventilated. Wall cavities below the leak can be dried by drilling small holes near the top plate or removing baseboards, and window trim and carpet that caught drips can often be dried as well. Dry winter air helps once the leak is stopped.

Wet attic insulation near the eaves usually has to be removed, because it packs down and holds water against the ceiling for days in cold weather. Ceiling drywall that sags, has soft seams or was wet through several freeze and thaw cycles is normally cut out, since a soaked ceiling can fall without warning. Insulation inside exterior walls that wicked melt water usually comes out too. Water that ran through old attic dust or nests near soffit vents may be treated as dirtier water, and stained paint often needs a sealing primer before repainting.

Ice dams show up across American Fork in snowy winters. Older homes near Main Street and the original town grid often have low attics, older ventilation and additions where two rooflines meet, all places where ice builds. Newer two-story homes on the west side toward I-15 have large roofs with valleys and dormers that collect snow, and a leak over a vaulted room can be hard to trace. On the east bench near Intermountain American Fork Hospital, homes with north-facing roof slopes keep snow in the shade and can build ice at the eaves through long cold spells.

The same winter weather reaches nearby towns. Many Orem and Provo homes from the 1970s through the 1990s have older attics and roof ventilation, and in Provo rentals a leak along an outside wall can run down toward a basement apartment. In older Springville homes near the historic district and newer Mapleton houses with large roofs, ice dams form during the same cold spells. Wherever you are, one call connects you with a local crew that can arrange ice relief, dry the damage and help plan repairs.