Ice dam risk in Saratoga Springs, UT
How often ice dams form in Saratoga Springs
8.5 dam days a winter
Moderate risk. On an ordinary house in Saratoga Springs, conditions for an ice dam come on about 8.5 days in a normal winter, mostly in January and December.
Saratoga Springs averages 26 inches of snow a year and about 33 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 Saratoga Springs
| Attic | Dam days | Risk |
|---|---|---|
| Air-sealed and well insulated | 6.9 | Moderate |
| Typical, some insulation, not air-sealed | 8.5 | Moderate |
| Older or poorly insulated, warm attic | 10.6 | Moderate |
The attic matters less in Saratoga Springs than in colder towns: there are only 1.6 days a winter between a typical attic and a sealed one.
Preventing ice dams on a Saratoga Springs 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.
Saratoga Springs winter, month by month
| Month | Snow (in) | Days on ground | Dam days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7.4 | 13.8 | 3.8 |
| February | 3.6 | 6.5 | 1.5 |
| March | 1.8 | 0.9 | 0.1 |
| April | 1.3 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| October | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| November | 3.7 | 1.5 | 0.3 |
| December | 8.2 | 9.9 | 2.7 |
Saratoga Springs next to nearby towns
Saratoga Springs ranks 49 of 67 Utah cities here for ice-dam days, behind Ogden at 37.2 days.
- Eagle Mountain, UT 5 mi, 13.9 days
- Lehi, UT 6 mi, 17.2 days
- American Fork, UT 7 mi, 8.2 days
- Highland, UT 9 mi, 17.0 days
- Vineyard, UT 9 mi, 8.2 days
Where these numbers come from
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals from Utah Lake Lehi, 1.5 miles from Saratoga Springs. 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.