Easy Heat ADKS-500 100-Foot Roof De-Icing Cable Reviews
I've used various lengths of this Easy Heat de-icing cable for years; they are reliable and good value.br /br /br /As written in the manual, its primary purpose is NOT to melt 2" or thicker of snow or harden ice that caps the foot or two above the roof-line edge, eaves, gutters, or frozen solid downspouts. Its use is to PREVENT this buildup, which means IDEALLY turn on if an imminent (heavy) snow storm is brewing. Problem is that it draws quite a bit of electricity when running for days at a time, depending your region of the country, especially for longer cables and when multiple cables are installed around the house. If you have some alternative green, power generating means, then leave them on. For the rest of us relying on our local municipal power grid, you will definitely see an increased monthly electric bill. However, to prevent thousands of dollars of damage caused by ice dams outweighs this annual cost.br /br /br /There are trade-offs in the following suggestions (I did not like the Easy Heat Thermostat switch they sell, since when does below 32 degrees temperature indicate actual snow fall?). Here are two ways to minimize power consumption:br /br /1. Assuming you or your electrician properly wired the de-icing cable for power, turn on all of the de-icing cables when the sun is shining fully, and turn them off at dusk. Though the temperature is below freezing, the sun's infrared radiation does aide to accelerate melting the snow and ice while the cables are turned on. (Another warning to sun bathers not to tan and to use sunscreen.) Even if it freezes again overnight, do so again the next day. Hopefully, it's another sunny day. The purpose is to relieve the build up of water in the gutters and down spouts.br /br /2. Since it is impossibly inconvenient to time when the sun (dis)appears (drive home to turn them on or off), suddenly the weather turns for the worse, or if you travel a lot, what I've done is safely wired each de-icing cable to a remote power boot device that is typically used to remotely power off and on computers and servers over the Internet. There are many out there, and are costly (easily 0+, and you may need several of them depending on how many de-icing cables installed and its lengths). Find one where you can schedule multiple events during all 7 days in the week for automatic power off and on, instead of just a simple function of you triggering the receptacle ports to turn on and off (significantly cheaper). You need to be concerned with the power rating (in Amps) so it does not trip the electrical breakers or the unit itself.br /br /The assumption here is: you have reliable Internet access, you have knowledge of computer networking and as a electrician, and you are prepared to invest several hundred dollars if not much more. The pay off and savings will depend on how much it snows each season and your (scheduled) use of the cables.br /br /br /br /OR.. if you don't want to deal with any of this cost and maintenance, and your surrounding foundation's base is acceptable to take on a large body of rain water without flooding your basement (non-winter season), it is safe for ice build up (during the winter) on the ground, have long overhanging eaves, and the icicles formed won't kill anyone if fall, then completely remove all gutters and downspouts..like a ski lodge or cabin.br /br /br /Good luck!
Easy Heat ADKS-500 100-Foot Roof De-Icing Cable Feature
- Easy Heat ADKS de-icing kit keeps roof edges, gutters, and downspouts ice-free
- Easy Heat ADKS de-icing kit provides uninterrupted path for melting water
- Versatile design adapts to most roof and gutter configurations
- Includes 6 clips and 2 mounting screws
- CSA certified; measures 1000-feet in length
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Great product for the money - amberd -
Nice heavy duty cord. Should work well for keeping an area unfrozen this winter
Easy Heat De-Icing Kit - Joe Davis - WV, USA
Good product at a reasonable price. Much damage can be done to your spouting and shingles without this product to prevent Ice Up. If water runs inside to your wall, the damage is more severe. With the winter that broke records older than 100 years, protection like this in more important than ever!
Nov 05, 2010 00:40:07
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