Ice dam risk in Lexington, NC
Will your roof get ice dams in Lexington, NC?
0.2 dam days a winter
Almost never. An ordinary house in Lexington sees 0.2 days a winter when an ice dam can form, because snow rarely stays on a roof long enough below freezing.
Lexington averages 3 inches of snow a year and about 1 day 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 Lexington?
- 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.
Lexington winter, month by month
| Month | Snow (in) | Days on ground | Dam days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 2.0 | 0.4 | 0.1 |
| February | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.0 |
| March | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| December | 0.6 | 0.3 | 0.0 |
Lexington next to nearby towns
Lexington ranks 51 of 91 North Carolina cities here for ice-dam days, behind Boone at 4.9 days.
- Thomasville, NC 12 mi, 0.0 days
- Salisbury, NC 15 mi, 0.1 days
- Clemmons, NC 17 mi, 1.2 days
- Archdale, NC 19 mi, 0.0 days
- High Point, NC 21 mi, 0.0 days
Where these numbers come from
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals from Lexington, 3.4 miles from Lexington. 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.