Sun on Cold Snow: The Dillon Pattern
Altitude makes the sun stronger and the air colder at the same time. A roof in Dillon can be producing meltwater on its south face at midday while the thermometer reads well below freezing.
Depth makes it worse. A Summit County roof can carry several feet of pack, and all of that is a reservoir sitting above an eave that never sees sun.
Ice-barrier practice in Summit County
High-country Colorado codes typically call for extended ice barrier and, on metal roofing, snow guards above any door, walkway or parking area. Both exist because of what comes off these roofs.
How a Dillon Steam Call Runs, Start to Finish
Nothing gets touched until the roof has been walked and photographed. The crew finds every dam, locates where water is getting in, shows you, and gives you the crew-hour rate and a time estimate before the equipment comes off the truck.
Removal then works from the worst point outward, so water starts draining early rather than at the end. Gutters and downspouts frozen solid get steamed through in the same visit — leaving them means the eave dams again within days.
Why the dam formed in the first place
Ice dams are a heat problem wearing a weather costume. Warm air escaping into the attic melts snow on the upper roof; that meltwater runs to the eave, which hangs past the heated envelope and stays below freezing; it refreezes there, and the ridge of ice grows a layer every cycle. Removal is the emergency fix. Before the crew leaves you will know which part of your attic is feeding it.
What steam actually does
A steam unit delivers water at roughly 290°F at a pressure low enough to rest your hand in the plume. It cuts a channel straight through the ice and lifts the dam off in sections, right down to the shingle. The heat does the work, not force, so granules, seal strips and flashing come through untouched.
That is the whole difference between steam and the hot pressure washers often sold as steam. A pressure washer cuts ice fast because of its pressure — and that same pressure strips the granules off asphalt shingles and drives water up under the courses. One method removes ice. The other removes ice and roof.
What happens after the ice is off
Once the eave is clear and water is draining, the crew walks the interior with you where there is visible damage and says plainly whether it needs drying. Wet insulation and a damp ceiling cavity do not resolve themselves in a cold Dillon February.
If it does, that is a separate scope and it gets written separately — nobody is upsold a dryout on the strength of one damp patch.
| Local ice-barrier practice | Extended membrane plus snow retention |
|---|---|
| Typical scope | Steam, 8-16 crew hours typical |
| Dispatch window | 24 to 48 hours in mountain terrain |
| Service | Ice dam removal in Dillon, CO |
| Documentation | Dated before and after photos, written scope in Xactimate line items |
| Pricing model | Billed by the crew hour, rate quoted before dispatch |
| Removal method | Low-pressure steam only. No chipping, salt or pressure washing. |
Where We Dispatch Around Dillon
Crews working Dillon cover the surrounding Summit County addresses on the same route, so a storm week usually means one truck handling several properties rather than separate trips.
Nearest hub towns with their own crew pages: Silverthorne, Breckenridge, Frisco, Vail, Golden, Aspen.
Dillon sits inside the regular Colorado service area, so a crew is usually scheduled the same day or the following morning.
Active leak at an address in Dillon? (888) 561-9664 reaches dispatch directly. Interior water moves a job to the front of the day.
