Do Gutter Heaters Work

What gutter heating tape does for your gutters and roof.

Do gutter heaters work. An illustration and helpful explanation on how home rain gutters and downspouts work. How to choose a heated gutter system. Which system do you chose. Gutters and downspouts are made from wood vinyl or any of several different metals including aluminum galvanized steel stainless steel and copper.

Heat tape is a protected electrical cord that when used in gutters and pipes can stop them from freezing also known as gutter heat cables or gutter heaters heat tape helps to prevent ice dams from forming. On the contrary having gutter covers can work in the opposite way of a home with gutter heaters since the gutters do not need to completely fill with ice to cause an ice dam. If you are experiencing ice dams it may be a ventilation and insulation issue within your home. This method combined with gutter guards works great because when you put the gutter guard on it traps all the heat inside allowing the whole system to stay warm.

Once even a thin layer of ice is frozen over the covers the water has nowhere to go but continues to freeze into multiple layers of ice until a huge ice dam forms. Gutter heaters mean you can flick a switch and forget about the snow fall. Homeowners may think that zig zag cables on the roof and heated gutters are effective at preventing ice dams however this is not the case. Gutter heating systems prevent roof damage during the winter months.

Heat cables for roofs and gutters have widely varying price points primarily depending on the length of the cable. Before the melted snow runs off the roof however it refreezes right near the edge over the eaves. If you live in a warmer climate like san antonio gutter heat tape is an easy solution to frozen gutters that can also increase the gutters lifespan. Heat cables work best when installed inside of the gutter.

To simplify comparisons calculate the cost of each cable per foot. Heat tape or heating tape is another name for a heated electrical cord that runs through your gutters. Without gutter heating snow lands on your roof and can turn to water due to the heat that your roof generates. Gutter heaters don t prevent ice dams.

Therefore when snow on the roof starts to melt it will hit a warm gutter guard and a warm gutter allowing your gutters to only deal with water and not ice. As you can see ice dams are an internal heat loss problem. When heat cables are installed on the roof s edge a few additional challenges are created and the same problem remains that when the melted snow hits the cold gutter it will likely refreeze and build on top of your gutter. This allows you to fairly compare prices of an 80 foot cable with a 90 foot cable.