How Does Roof Heat Tape Work

Heat tape is a type of electric heater cord that s protected from the elements.

How does roof heat tape work.

The roof heat cable is placed in key areas of concern. Each season as we approach winter and temperatures begin to drop it is important that you turn your heat cable on so that it can begin to proactively adjust and keep your gutter warm. Many brands of heat tape are designed to simply wrap around the pipe but some must be attached. While the proper and reliable repair for roof ice dam problems is the correct installation of ventilation and insulation and perhaps ice and water shield heat tapes can provide emergency relief when ice dam problems are already present on a building.

How does self regulating heat tape work. When put in place such as in pipes and gutters it works to generate just enough heat to keep water from freezing. The term heat tape refers to another product an insulated electrical wire applied to water pipes to keep them from freezing and bursting. The heat cable that we install is self regulating and the temperature of it will adjust based on the atmosphere.

The type of heat tape used on roofs and gutters to prevent ice buildup is properly called heat cable. Learn about how self regulating heat tape works what benefits it provides when compared to standard constant wattage heat tape and why you ll want to install heat tape pro for your ice dam prevention or pipe freeze pro for your pipe freeze prevention needs. How does heat tape work. As more and more water melts down the roof and refreezes at these locations ice builds up and forms a blockage or dam.

This video courtesy of raychem provides a short but informative understanding of how self regulating heat tracing cable sometimes referred to as heat tap. They form when snow melts in warmer areas of the roof sending water running down toward the edge. Remove any insulation on the pipe and brush off cobwebs and dirt with a stiff paintbrush. Adding heat tapes along roof edges can melt holes through existing ice dams to prevent water back up and leaks into the building attic or walls and heat tapes can prevent new ice dam leaks from occurring.