Ice dam risk in Vineyard, UT
Will your roof get ice dams in Vineyard, UT?
8.2 dam days a winter
Moderate risk. On an ordinary house in Vineyard, conditions for an ice dam come on about 8.2 days in a normal winter, mostly in January and December.
Vineyard averages 41 inches of snow a year and about 33 days with snow on the ground. Plenty falls, but it tends to melt off between storms, which keeps the count lower than the snowfall suggests. That gap is why snowfall alone misleads.
What your attic does to that number in Vineyard
| Attic | Dam days | Risk |
|---|---|---|
| Air-sealed and well insulated | 6.2 | Moderate |
| Typical, some insulation, not air-sealed | 8.2 | Moderate |
| Older or poorly insulated, warm attic | 10.6 | Moderate |
The attic matters less in Vineyard than in colder towns: there are only 2.0 days a winter between a typical attic and a sealed one.
What to do about ice dams in Vineyard
- 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.
Vineyard winter, month by month
| Month | Snow (in) | Days on ground | Dam days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 11.5 | 13.8 | 3.8 |
| February | 8.3 | 6.5 | 1.4 |
| March | 3.9 | 0.9 | 0.1 |
| April | 2.8 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| May | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
| October | 0.8 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| November | 3.5 | 1.5 | 0.2 |
| December | 10.3 | 9.9 | 2.7 |
Vineyard next to nearby towns
Vineyard ranks 52 of 67 Utah cities here for ice-dam days, behind Ogden at 37.2 days.
- Orem, UT 3 mi, 9.3 days
- Lindon, UT 3 mi, 8.2 days
- Pleasant Grove, UT 5 mi, 8.2 days
- American Fork, UT 5 mi, 8.2 days
- Provo, UT 7 mi, 9.3 days
Where these numbers come from
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals from Pleasant Grove, 4.5 miles from Vineyard. 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.