Ice dam risk in Winchester, TN
How often ice dams form in Winchester
0.4 dam days a winter
Almost never. An ordinary house in Winchester sees 0.4 days a winter when an ice dam can form, because snow rarely stays on a roof long enough below freezing.
Winchester averages 4 inches of snow a year and about 3 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 Winchester?
- 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.
Winchester winter, month by month
| Month | Snow (in) | Days on ground | Dam days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 1.4 | 1.2 | 0.2 |
| February | 1.0 | 0.6 | 0.1 |
| March | 1.0 | 0.3 | 0.0 |
| December | 0.7 | 0.4 | 0.1 |
Winchester next to nearby towns
Winchester ranks 30 of 65 Tennessee cities here for ice-dam days, behind Crossville at 2.6 days.
- Tullahoma, TN 14 mi, 0.3 days
- Manchester, TN 19 mi, 0.3 days
- Shelbyville, TN 29 mi, 0.1 days
- Scottsboro, AL 38 mi, 0.0 days
- McMinnville, TN 39 mi, 0.5 days
Where these numbers come from
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals from Winchester 5SE, 4.8 miles from Winchester. 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.