While the winter storms are inconvenient and seemingly endless, the effects of the storms run far beyond the need to shovel your driveway. The icicles hanging from Kansas City homes across the metro might be pretty to look at, but they can cause serious problems to your roof. Experts say one way these icicles form is if you have leaves in your gutters. If you have poor insulation or air leaks in the attic, it can warm the roof, melting the ice and pushing it to the edge of your roof, where it refreezes and forms an ice dam. From there, ice can get under the shingles and cause serious water damage.

What can you do to stop this from happening? Right now, it’s too late. But once the snow melts, you can get remove leaves from your gutter. And don’t forget the attic. You’ll want to seal any holes with silicone caulk and add extra insulation to prevent it from happening again. Protecting your Kansas City home from icicle damage is probably something you haven’t thought about, but it is an important step to preserving your real estate investment.