Ice dam risk in Apex, NC
Will your roof get ice dams in Apex, NC?
0.5 dam days a winter
Almost never. An ordinary house in Apex sees 0.5 days a winter when an ice dam can form, because snow rarely stays on a roof long enough below freezing.
Apex averages 5 inches of snow a year and about 3 days with snow on the ground. Too little lies on the roof for long. The conditions that make a dam need all three at once: snow, cold at the eave and heat above it.
Do you need to do anything in Apex?
- Nothing for ice dams. If you are buying here and an inspector mentions water at the eaves, ask what they saw: it is far more likely a gutter, flashing or drip-edge problem than ice.
Snowy places are not always the worst: why snowfall misleads.
Apex winter, month by month
| Month | Snow (in) | Days on ground | Dam days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 2.9 | 2.0 | 0.3 |
| February | 1.0 | 0.6 | 0.1 |
| March | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
| November | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
| December | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.0 |
Apex next to nearby towns
Apex ranks 17 of 91 North Carolina cities here for ice-dam days, behind Boone at 4.9 days.
- Cary, NC 5 mi, 0.5 days
- Holly Springs, NC 5 mi, 0.5 days
- Morrisville, NC 8 mi, 0.5 days
- Fuquay-Varina, NC 10 mi, 0.5 days
- Garner, NC 15 mi, 0.5 days
Where these numbers come from
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals from Apex, 2.7 miles from Apex. 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.