Should I Knock the Icicles off My Icy Roof?

Call us at 1-800-ICE-DAMS if you have an ice dam on your roof and live anywhere in the lower 48. We are properly licensed, bonded, and insured, and are the top-rated ice dam removal company in the US. You can end the leaks with a phone call to Ice Dam Guys^®.

Image credit: dendroica.blogspot.com

I’m guessing it started back in our caveman days: the tendency to step outside of our dwelling, marvel at the sparkly icicles hanging down, and rip them off with a triumphant grunt.  Heck, if it was around dinnertime, we may have even chased after the nearest wooly mammoth with the icicle in hand.

But to answer your good question, no: assuming you live in a house and not in a cave, you should NOT knock the icicles off your roof.

The reason is that the icicles often form on your shingles.  The shingles are what the icicles are attached to.  If you rip the icicle off, one of two bad things will happen:

1.  You will instantly rip some of the shingles cleanly off your roof.  If you’re looking for a great excuse to call over a roofer in the springtime, look no farther.

OR

2.  You’ll remove some of the granules from your shingles (AKA the rough, bumpy stuff that makes up the surface of all the asphalt shingles on your roof).  Think of your shingles as skin: as you may know, your skin is made up of 7 layers.  When you rip off an icicle and remove some of the granules of your shingles, that’s like removing a layer of skin from your roof.  The little granules provide fire-resistance and protect the asphalt layer of the shingles from UV light.  When you remove granules, you’re making your home less safe and more vulnerable to the elements—and you’re inching your way closer to needing a roof replacement.

Leave the icicle-removal to the cavemen and ice dam removal professionals.