If you have icicles hanging off your house, knock them down.
Although there are no icicle injury statistics, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigated 16 fatalities and serious injuries related to snow and ice removal in the past 10 years.
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Winter weather damages homes, too. The biggest issue is ice dams.
Ice dams are ridges of ice that form on the edge of a roof and are a result of poor insulation. They are created when heat escapes into the attic, meets the roof and melts the snow. In turn, this melted snow runs into the gutter and forms an ice dam.
Corey Thrush of Thrush and Son LLC in Brookville said the issue worsens as the water backtracks into the house, damaging walls, floors, insulation and more.
"Get on it right away, Thrush told News Center 7’s Gabrielle Enright. “Make sure your gutters are clean and check out your attic insulation.”
Thrush advises that your home be up to Ohio building codes, which requires R38 insulation.
