WHY CHOOSE US- EXTRUDED METAL DESIGN

Attached is a photo outlining concerns HotEdge feels exist with an “extruded metal” design. A metal extruded design is the ONLY alternative to HotEdge designed specifically to heat a roof edge. Both an extruded metal design and HotEdge system successfully eliminate icicles and ice dams on a roof edge. However, there are several key design issues we feel separate the two options. Those issues are outlined below:

1. The silver metal portion in the photo is an example of an extruded metal design. This design holds either 2 or 3 runs of 12W ice melt cables (photo is showing a 2 cable run extruded metal design). Obviously, the need to run 2 or 3 cables requires more energy to operate and get the same result achieved with 1 cable run used for a HotEdge system to function optimally. Less energy consumption means a GREEN solution. In fact, HotEdge is the most energy efficient roof edge ice melt solution available by a significant margin.
2. The reason we believe it takes 2 to 3 12W cable runs with an extruded metal design to get the same result HotEdge is able to achieve with 1 12W cable run is how efficiently a design is able to transfer heat from the 12W cable to a metal slip sheet/drip edge. In the photo, you see an air space or gap between the silver extruded metal design and the brown top cover (metal slip sheet/drip edge. This air gap causes a “storm window effect”. A “storm window effect” occurs when an air gap in a heat transfer area dramatically decreases the amount of heat that is transferred from the ice melt cable to the metal slip sheet/drip edge. A NEW patent pending HotEdge system understands this issue, hence, was designed to eliminate air space and gap between metal drip edge and 12W ice melt cable.
3. Once an extruded metal design is fully installed, the 12W ice melt cables are not exposed because the cables sitting in the extruded metal design would be completely covered by a metal slip sheet/drip edge. Part of the photo shows this. You are only able to see the extruded metal design in the photo because it is a cut-away for show & tell purposes in a showroom. At Hot Edge our understanding is the NEC (Article 426) only allows “exposed” ice melt cable to be used on roofs and structures. A HotEdge system clearly meets this requirement by exposing ice melt cable between the bottom of a metal drip edge and the HotEdge after a complete HotEdge system installation.
4. The extruded metal design also makes it difficult for easy inspection and replacement of 12W ice melt cable. Manufacturers of ice melt cable state that self regulating heating cables have a useful half-life of five to ten years, hence, cable replacement is an inevitable task. Although not directly specified in the Code, the replacement issue is understood in the field by the licensed electricians and enforced by local electrical inspectors. Issuance of a CO (Certificate of Occupancy) depends in part on the approval of the installation of the ice melt system by the local electrical inspector.
5. Penetration in the roof structure is avoided with a HotEdge system. You can see in the photo that it is necessary to penetrate the roof structure with screws to hold an extruded metal design in place. It is a common understanding that if you can eliminate additional penetration on a roof structure the risks of water penetrating into a structure is reduced. The only penetrations necessary to install a HotEdge system are screws every 12 inches into the side fascia region just beneath the drip edge and not on the roof.
6. The brown metal slipsheet/drip edge cover you see in the photo is necessary in 100% of extruded metal design installations. On all metal roofs, HotEdge uses the EXISTING metal drip edge to function optimally. It is not necessary to add an additional metal slip sheet/drip edge on a metal roof with HotEdge. On asphalt, composite or wood shingle roofs, all options (extruded metal and HotEdge) require a metal slip sheet/drip edge be installed.
7. A complete installation cost for an extruded metal system is approx. $100 linear/ft on new construction and $160 linear/ft for retrofits versus approx. $30-$50 ($50 if a metal slip sheet/drip edge is required)linear foot for all HotEdge installations.