Ice dam risk in Atoka, TN
How often ice dams form in Atoka
0.4 dam days a winter
Almost never. An ordinary house in Atoka sees 0.4 days a winter when an ice dam can form, because snow rarely stays on a roof long enough below freezing.
Atoka averages 2 inches of snow a year and about 2 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 Atoka?
- 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.
Atoka winter, month by month
| Month | Snow (in) | Days on ground | Dam days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 0.7 | 1.1 | 0.2 |
| February | 0.6 | 0.7 | 0.1 |
| March | 0.9 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
| December | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
Atoka next to nearby towns
Atoka ranks 29 of 65 Tennessee cities here for ice-dam days, behind Crossville at 2.6 days.
- Millington, TN 9 mi, 0.3 days
- Lakeland, TN 12 mi, 0.3 days
- Bartlett, TN 13 mi, 0.3 days
- Arlington, TN 14 mi, 0.3 days
- Oakland, TN 20 mi, 0.2 days
Where these numbers come from
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals from Covington 3 SW, 9.8 miles from Atoka. 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.