Spring melt brings added caution for homeowners

Weather across the province has finally warmed up, and with a little more snowfall than usual, that could mean a big melt this spring.

Jeff Sereda, co-owner of the Saskatoon Disaster Services restoration company, warns that extra water around your home could cause major problems.

“It all depends on how fast the snow melt is and how much snow has accumulated over the course of the winter,” he said.

“The biggest suggestion I would have for this week with the melt that we’re having right now would be for ice damming and removing the snow from your foundation.”

Ice damming is when constant melting and freezing on your roof causes a ridge of ice to build up along the roof’s edge. That ice creates a blockage and prevents melting snow from draining.

“As a result of that, the water backs up behind the dam and it can move up underneath the shingles and into the attic space,” Sereda said.

That can lead to extensive damage to insulation, drywall and other contents in a house as slow water leakages largely go unnoticed, Sereda explained.

The easiest solution to this problem is getting a roof rake or roof snow shovel to pull snow off the edge of the roof to allow water to flow along the eavestrough.

The other problem with rapid melting is making sure that water doesn’t build up in your basement.

“Oftentimes a homeowner needs to be cautious of this because oftentimes seepage isn’t covered by a standard insurance policy,” Sereda said.

He suggests homeowners act quickly to remove four or six feet of snow closest to the home’s foundation to ensure no water finds its way into the basement.

Winter woes

Saskatoon Disaster Services had a busy winter with usual problems that accompany the extreme cold.

Frozen pipes was a common occurrence this year, whether it be from furnaces malfunctioning while owners were on vacation or water being left in the home’s external lines from last fall.

Sereda said condominiums and apartments aren’t safe either.

“We’ve seen a couple situations where several floors up in a downtown apartment building, somebody leaves the balcony door open and it freezes the toilets and causes several floors of damage,” Sereda said. “Homeowners need to be mindful that they’re checking on their furnace and that any lines going outside are properly shut off and drained.”