Ice dam risk in Bolivar, MO
Ice dams in Bolivar, MO: how often
2.8 dam days a winter
Low risk. On an ordinary house in Bolivar, conditions for an ice dam come on about 2.8 days in a normal winter, mostly in January and December.
Bolivar averages 9 inches of snow a year and about 12 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 Bolivar
| Attic | Dam days | Risk |
|---|---|---|
| Air-sealed and well insulated | 1.9 | Low |
| Typical, some insulation, not air-sealed | 2.8 | Low |
| Older or poorly insulated, warm attic | 3.8 | Low |
The attic matters less in Bolivar than in colder towns: there are only 0.9 days a winter between a typical attic and a sealed one.
What to do about ice dams in Bolivar
- Check the gutters before the first snow and clear them, so meltwater has somewhere to go. If you see icicles thicker than a finger along the eave after a storm, that is the early sign to look at the attic.
Snowy places are not always the worst: why snowfall misleads.
Bolivar winter, month by month
| Month | Snow (in) | Days on ground | Dam days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 4.1 | 6.3 | 1.7 |
| February | 1.7 | 2.1 | 0.5 |
| March | 1.2 | 0.7 | 0.1 |
| November | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.0 |
| December | 1.5 | 2.2 | 0.5 |
Bolivar next to nearby towns
Bolivar ranks 61 of 80 Missouri cities here for ice-dam days, behind Maryville at 9.3 days.
- Springfield, MO 29 mi, 2.7 days
- Republic, MO 30 mi, 2.7 days
- Nixa, MO 39 mi, 2.8 days
- Ozark, MO 41 mi, 3.9 days
- Lebanon, MO 42 mi, 2.6 days
Where these numbers come from
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals from Buffalo 2N, 17.5 miles from Bolivar. 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.