Avoid roof damage with this disc

Icicles and ice dams can block the natural drainage of water from the roof, causing damage to sheathing and shingles. The fix? Use Roof Melt tablets ($20 for 60, The Home Depot stores). The small discs of deicing material can be tossed like Frisbees onto the roof edge, no ladder required, before a snowfall to help flakes melt. Ice already formed? “Try to melt a line perpendicular to the ice dam,” says Craig Gielsten, VP of Operations at Rainbow International Restoration. “It will relieve trapped water and get it flowing in the right direction.” Always use products made with calcium chloride, not road rock salt, which can erode shingles.