Ice dam risk in Houston, TX
Ice dams in Houston, TX: how often
0.0 dam days a winter
Almost never. An ordinary house in Houston sees 0.0 days a winter when an ice dam can form, because snow rarely stays on a roof long enough below freezing.
Houston averages 0 inches of snow a year and about 0 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 Houston?
- 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.
Houston next to nearby towns
Houston ranks 40 of 252 Texas cities here for ice-dam days, behind Pampa at 2.6 days.
- West University Place, TX 5 mi, 0.0 days
- Bellaire, TX 7 mi, 0.0 days
- Galena Park, TX 10 mi, 0.0 days
- South Houston, TX 13 mi, 0.0 days
- Stafford, TX 15 mi, 0.0 days
Where these numbers come from
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals from Houston-Port, 7.1 miles from Houston. 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.