What makes ice dam prevention in Waterloo its own problem
Homes in Waterloo rarely fail all at once — they fail slowly, through one heating season at a time.
Infill and renovation work in Waterloo frequently reroutes venting without re-sizing it, and undersized or over-long runs are the single most common cause of poor draft we see.
Air-sealing and window upgrades have made Waterloo homes far tighter than they were designed to be, and a tight house starves a natural-draft appliance of the make-up air it needs.
Across Mary Allen, Alexandra, Erb Street, Northdale and Eastbridge, the housing stock changes street by street, and the correct method changes with it. A century home with a soft-brick stack does not get the same treatment as a 2010 build with a factory-built vent — using one method on both is how systems get damaged.
If you live anywhere near the University of Waterloo, the practical takeaway is that a ice dam prevention visit should start with an assessment, not a tool. Any crew that begins work before telling you what they found is guessing on your behalf.