Product Guide
Measuring for Heat Tape
Getting Your Dimensions to Calculate Your Heat Tape Needs
One aspect of purchasing heat tape to solve/prevent an ice dam problem, is that the amount of product you need to purchase is dependant on the area of roof you are going to protect. To understand the size of your installation you need to know two main measurements: (A) The horizontal length of the eave you are protecting, and (B) The depth of your eave.
Here’s a brief overview of a what we are measuring, so we can take these figure to the heat tape calculator:
Length of Eave
This is the amount of horizontal coverage that your heat tape installation will protect on your roof, in feet. It may be an entire length of one side of your house or it may be a portion of that. It may go around a corner, either concave or convex. This length can be measured near the ground.
Depth of Eave
This is the amount that the edge of your roof sticks out beyond the external wall of your home, in inches. If you can not get up close to the bottom of the eave, than make sure you estimate high to make sure you’ve gotten a a length that will cover this depth.
Next: 3 Things to Note
Roof Valleys
Valleys are the part of your roof that is formed where two surfaces of your sloped roof meet on a concave turn (opposite of a hip). If you have an ice dam on your roof near a valley, you need to protect this succeptible area from ice build up, by installing heat tape up the valley.
Downspouts on Gutters
If the affected area has gutters, there will most likely be a downspout, which should be protected by running heat tape through it. Two-story downspouts are obviously longer than one, but our heat tape calculator can take care of those totals for you. You just need to know if they exists.
Distance to Outlet
Heat Tape Pro comes with a 10-foot cold lead (plug-in cord) in addition to the stated length of the cable you will buy. However, if your outlet is further away from the end of your installation than 10 feet, you’ll want to included that extra distance in the calculator.
Finally: Assess for Any Special Situations
For 8 out of 10 installations, the above considerations will help you to acquire the measurements needed to plug into our Heat Tape Calculator and identify which size cable you need to protect your home from ice dams.
However, every heat tape installation can be a little different and some require additional length of Heat Tape to protect specific areas of customer roofs that are not necessarily part of a “standard” Heat tape installation. These situations can be addressed by using the “Show Advanced Options” toggle on the Heat Tape Calculator.
The included gallery shows a few of these situations, but it’s impossible to know what your roof needs. If you need help, you can always contact our expert heat tape technicians to help you with measuring for your installation.
Download
Our Measuring Worksheet
Measuring Worksheet
Print & Use this PDF to Record Your Measurements
Want an easy way to record your dimensions so they are organized and ready to be inputted into the Heat Tape Calculator? Use this printable PDF worksheet for measuring your heat tape installation site.
Radiant Solutions Heat Tape Calculator
Once you know your dimensions, head on over to our Heat Tape Calculator and plug in the figures to identify the length of Heat Tape you need to buy.
More Information on Heat Tape Installation
If you’re looking for more information about installation of heat tape, different installation scenarios or tips and tricks about installation, here’s some resources on our website: