Ice dam risk in Fruita, CO
Ice dams in Fruita, CO: how often
6.2 dam days a winter
Moderate risk. On an ordinary house in Fruita, conditions for an ice dam come on about 6.2 days in a normal winter, mostly in January and December.
Fruita averages 22 inches of snow a year and about 24 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 Fruita
| Attic | Dam days | Risk |
|---|---|---|
| Air-sealed and well insulated | 4.9 | Low |
| Typical, some insulation, not air-sealed | 6.2 | Moderate |
| Older or poorly insulated, warm attic | 7.9 | Moderate |
The attic matters less in Fruita than in colder towns: there are only 1.3 days a winter between a typical attic and a sealed one.
Preventing ice dams on a Fruita roof
- 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.
More on when a roof rake is worth it.
Fruita winter, month by month
| Month | Snow (in) | Days on ground | Dam days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6.2 | 11.8 | 3.3 |
| February | 3.9 | 4.0 | 0.9 |
| March | 2.1 | 0.6 | 0.1 |
| April | 0.7 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
| May | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| October | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| November | 2.8 | 0.8 | 0.1 |
| December | 5.4 | 6.9 | 1.9 |
Fruita next to nearby towns
Fruita ranks 49 of 53 Colorado cities here for ice-dam days, behind Steamboat Springs at 51.0 days.
- Grand Junction, CO 10 mi, 6.9 days
- Rifle, CO 58 mi, 16.6 days
- Montrose, CO 67 mi, 10.1 days
- Glenwood Springs, CO 79 mi, 15.9 days
- Vernal, UT 99 mi, 20.9 days
Where these numbers come from
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals from Colorado Nm, 3.7 miles from Fruita. 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.
- Snow-on-the-ground counts come from a second, nearby station, because the closest one does not record them.