Ice dam risk in Clearfield, UT
Ice dams in Clearfield, UT: how often
6.7 dam days a winter
Moderate risk. On an ordinary house in Clearfield, conditions for an ice dam come on about 6.7 days in a normal winter, mostly in January and December.
Clearfield averages 23 inches of snow a year and about 25 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 Clearfield
| Attic | Dam days | Risk |
|---|---|---|
| Air-sealed and well insulated | 4.6 | Low |
| Typical, some insulation, not air-sealed | 6.7 | Moderate |
| Older or poorly insulated, warm attic | 9.3 | Moderate |
Sealing and insulating a typical attic takes out about 2.1 days a winter here. It drops the risk from moderate to low.
Preventing ice dams on a Clearfield 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.
Which to spend on first: air sealing or heat cable.
Clearfield winter, month by month
| Month | Snow (in) | Days on ground | Dam days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3.9 | 8.6 | 2.6 |
| February | 4.1 | 5.0 | 1.2 |
| March | 1.7 | 1.5 | 0.2 |
| April | 0.1 | 0.4 | 0.0 |
| May | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| October | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| November | 1.3 | 0.8 | 0.1 |
| December | 11.3 | 8.3 | 2.5 |
Clearfield next to nearby towns
Clearfield ranks 57 of 67 Utah cities here for ice-dam days, behind Ogden at 37.2 days.
- Syracuse, UT 3 mi, 6.7 days
- Layton, UT 3 mi, 6.7 days
- Clinton, UT 4 mi, 6.7 days
- West Point, UT 5 mi, 6.7 days
- Roy, UT 5 mi, 6.7 days
Where these numbers come from
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals from Weber Basin Pump Plt 3, 5.6 miles from Clearfield. 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.