Ice Dam Removal in Toronto & the GTA

When a ridge of ice thickens along the eaves and the icicles start reaching for the ground, the clock is running. Behind that dam, meltwater is pooling on the shingles — and shingles are built to shed water running downhill, not to hold water standing still. Once it backs up under the courses it finds the nail holes, and then the stain shows up inside.

Steam is the only removal method we'd use on our own homes. Low-pressure ice dam steaming cuts the ice off in sections without touching the shingles underneath; hatchets, hammers and pressure washers all take roofing off with the ice. We cut relief channels first where water is actively backing up, then remove the dam, then clear the snow above it so the melt supply stops feeding the problem.

We'll also tell you the uncomfortable part: removal treats the symptom. The dam formed because heat escaping your attic melted the snowpack from below, and the water refroze over the cold eaves. Unless that heat loss gets fixed — air sealing, insulation, ventilation — the ice will rebuild after the next storm. We quote the removal and the permanent fix separately, so you can see both.

• Low-pressure steam removal of the ice dam — no hatchets, hammers or pressure washers
• Relief channels cut first where water is actively backing up into the house
• Snow cleared from the roof area above the dam so the meltwater supply stops
• Frozen eavestroughs and downspout outlets opened so water has somewhere to go
• A check of the attic or interior leak point while we're on site
• Photos of the eave and shingle condition once the ice is off
• A plain-language explanation of why this dam formed, with prevention options

• Ice thickness and how many metres of eave are dammed
• Roof height and access — a rear two-storey eave over an addition is slower than a bungalow front
• Whether water is actively leaking inside, which makes it a now job instead of a this-week job
• Snow load that has to come off before the ice can
• Valleys and inside corners, which grow the thickest ice and take the longest to steam
• Eavestroughs frozen solid that need thawing as part of the same visit

Every home is different, so we don’t publish flat prices — the quote is free and based on your actual job.