Ice dam risk in Albany, NY
How often ice dams form in Albany
17.0 dam days a winter
High risk. On an ordinary house in Albany, conditions for an ice dam come on about 17.0 days in a normal winter, mostly in January and February.
Albany averages 59 inches of snow a year and about 57 days with snow on the ground. Most of it comes and goes within a few days. The conditions that make a dam need all three at once: snow, cold at the eave and heat above it.
What your attic does to that number in Albany
| Attic | Dam days | Risk |
|---|---|---|
| Air-sealed and well insulated | 9.1 | Moderate |
| Typical, some insulation, not air-sealed | 17.0 | High |
| Older or poorly insulated, warm attic | 26.8 | High |
Sealing and insulating a typical attic takes out about 7.9 days a winter here. It drops the risk from high to moderate. An older house with a warm attic should expect closer to 26.8 days.
Preventing ice dams on a Albany roof
- Air-seal the attic floor: the gaps around the hatch, light fixtures, plumbing stacks and the top plates of interior walls. This is the fix that removes the cause, and it usually costs less than a season of contractor ice removal.
- Rake the bottom three or four feet of roof after any storm that leaves more than about six inches, from the ground with a roof rake.
- At the next reroof, ask for ice-and-water membrane under the shingles from the eave to at least 24 inches inside the wall line. It does not stop a dam; it stops the leak when one forms.
Which to spend on first: air sealing or heat cable.
Albany winter, month by month
| Month | Snow (in) | Days on ground | Dam days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 15.6 | 18.0 | 6.4 |
| February | 13.7 | 15.9 | 5.1 |
| March | 12.0 | 10.0 | 2.2 |
| April | 1.6 | 0.8 | 0.1 |
| May | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| October | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| November | 2.6 | 1.9 | 0.3 |
| December | 13.3 | 10.3 | 2.9 |
Albany next to nearby towns
Albany ranks 42 of 90 New York cities here for ice-dam days, behind Utica at 46.1 days.
- Watervliet, NY 6 mi, 17.0 days
- Troy, NY 8 mi, 17.0 days
- Cohoes, NY 9 mi, 17.0 days
- Schenectady, NY 11 mi, 17.0 days
- Amsterdam, NY 28 mi, 24.7 days
Where these numbers come from
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals from Albany International Airport, 5.6 miles from Albany. A dam day is a day with snow on the roof and freezing at the eave while heat or sun melts the snow above it. This describes a normal winter, not this one.