If Mother Nature gives us another chance at a third 2-foot or more snowstorm before this winter is out, I'm going to take my wife and my dog and go to Florida for a week...maybe this is nature's way of saying I should be enjoying Spring Training this year...

I was busting up the ice on my front gutter and I ended up screwing up the gutter's attachment to the house. Now, the center of the thing hangs down and creates even more icicles than before. I was hitting the gutter from the front with the end of a broom, a plastic broom no less. I figured that was gentle enough to not cause damage.

What about using calcium chloride to melt ice dams. Is it worth it? Will it damage the roof or gutters?

FR: I've considered that myself. Any roofing experts out there?

In Good Will Hunting the protagonist chose the tire iron over the stick or belt when those items were placed before him by his abusive father. Mother Nature, BRING IT ON!!!!

I have an old house with sectional gutters running 40 feet across and a section has broken off. A relative of mine who is a roofer said that if you are having problems with ice damming, the best thing you can do is remove a gutter or section of a gutter to free the water so that it doesn't dam up under the shingles and into the house. He basically said my missing section wasn't necessarily a bad thing and may be a good thing.

ice dam trick courtesy of Annapolis Capital:

Fill the leg of an old pantyhose with salt. Throw on the roof, at a right angle to the gutter. this creates a channel for water to drain into the gutter and away from the house.

FR: Fascinating. But I'll have to have a good arm to wing that thing onto the roof from the deck.

Can someone please explain the purpose of getting the public riled up over the remote possibility of snow a week away? Two days ago, you were writing of the potential for a foot of snow and we barely got a dusting. Can't we hold off on predictions until at least 36 hours in advance?

FR: I could, but if I did, this would be the last medium in the market to mention it. Not a good survival plan. Besides, this gives readers a chance to make reservations for Florida. As for the busted forecasts, those were the predictions up until maybe 24 hours before the snow arrived (or failed to arrive). I don't make 'em. I just report 'em.

My gutters are completely frozen and it's raining inside my bay window. Drip drip drip drip drip... what to do? I've thought about clearing the roof with a push broom, but that seems unsafe. What's the safest way to get rid of all this ice so it stays outside of my house?

FR: There are some suggestions in the link above. Click on "We have an ice dam" in the 4th paragraph.

Not for the faint of heart, but I had problems with ice dams in my townhouse so I got up on the ladder with a propane torch and melted the ice in the gutter and especially around the downspout. This allowed some place for the water to go. I found that underneath the ice in the gutter was water with no place to go so it was just dripping. Once the downspout was clear, the water could move again and no more leaks! Granted, it's not the solution for everyone since I was 20 to 30 feet up on an extension ladder in a trench in the snow, but it worked for me.

FR: A fatal fall and burning down the house would seem to be among the potential drawbacks.

Hi Frank,

We had a problem this fall with leaves getting into our gutters (We have 3 100+ year old willow oaks in our yard) so we had Leaf Guard come out and install their gutters, which prevents things from getting inside and if something does, the gutters are larger and that something can still flow out. But we've had a terrible time with damning this winter. We had over 4" of ice built up behind our gutters. I called Leaf Guard and they basically said it wasn't there fault and said the problem lied with air getting into our dormers (we have a Cape Cod). They provided some recommendations to prevent it from happening again, which I can send you in .pdf format if you'd like. But it is a very frustrating problem. It seems we traded not having to clean leaves out in the fall for having to chip away ice in the winter. Go figure.

FR: Sure. Send it along. We had Gutter Helmet installed last summer for the same reason. Can't say they're to blame, because nearly every house on the street (they're all identical) has the same ice problem, and most have open gutters. It's just too much snow and too much warm air getting through the insulation (or too little insulation) and leaking into the soffets. Snow melts, water gets trapped behind the ice and backs up into the walls.

It doesn't do any good if you can't safely reach the gutter, but there are some techniques to reduce the drainage problem: Gettting Down in the Gutter: Voyage of the Ice-Dammed

FR: Good advice. If I could reach the rear gutter, I'd try it.

Mr. Margusity "like[s] the look of it?" Where does he live, Florida? What's there to like about the potential of another big storm? A week of melting might help roofs and gutters, but it is not going to decrease the giant roadside piles enough to make piling another 2 feet on top any easier.

I know people are sick of snow, but at this point, there aren't too many opportunities left for any significant snow storms. Moving into March, although possible, is not as probable as we have seen in February. That said, on my blog and on Baltimore Groundhog.com I have been posting since last Friday about the possibility of another storm next week. A review of Baltimore Groundhog and our blogs will show we have been right on (granted we were off with this clipper, although we were off by a couple inches vs off 6 or more inches). Just my two cents on the probability of another snow event for Maryland.

Thanks for the dam advice about my dam ice dam. Hope it won't damage my whole dam roof. Darnit!

We got a snow-job from the former mayor so what's a few more inches.

Keep the snow coming! It reminds me of my childhood in the Midwest. Plus, as a disgruntled Baltimore City teacher, the more it snows, the less I have to work

FR: And the less your students will learn. May be time for another line of work.

I live here in Florida and can tell you it has been cooler than normal. All the way down to Miami and Keys. Not beach weather. I am in St. Augustine and the high today was about 52. Our normal temps are 67/44. We may see that this weekend. But - no snow. I was in Bmore in 2003 for that storm. Awful

I'd rather know a week in advance and be able to plan accordingly, than to have to scramble to make something happen 36 hours in advance. Who wants to find out today that 30 inches of snow will be dumped on the ground Thursday?

Buy your toilet paper now! LOL!

Okay people, get a grip. I will admit I am a snow lover so I am quite biased. But, I say let it snow. We have had diddly squat that past 7 years. This is our time to shine this year for record snow. Lets go out with a bang. At least us snow lovers will be content for another 6 or 7 years.

Gee - it sounds like a Casablanca scene - "We'll always have the winter of 2010". Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

If you can find a roofer that will install the electrical gutter tapes (and have an electrician to install an outside outlet), these cables carry a small current that heats the gutters. This maintains a flow and could help with ice dams.

80" is enough, but that's because of what it means to the community. I don't have much problem with it - originally from Nebraska: blizzards, lived in MN: 20' drifts, stationed in Iceland in the 60's: warmest day was 42 deg. F. I've been to Greenland and to the North Pole. But people get stuck in front of my house. City plow on 2/6, cars and trucks driven by folks who don't understand deep snow, folks who appreciate my dug-out spot. Enough of that for me. I like the idea of heat tape on the gutters, I might try that - after I replace the damaged sections!

People here can complain, but at least we are not in Garrett County this year. They are seeing insane amounts of snowfall!