Stopping snow before it slides

By Emma Peterson. 

Roofing professionals discuss designing snow retention systems to protect buildings, property and people. 

In a new episode of Roofing Road Trips®, Karen Edwards sat down with Tony Abate and Nick Piontek for a conversation about snow retention systems. Tony is the manager at Richards Building Supply in Illinois and brings over 38 years of roofing experience to the table. Nick is the founder and CEO of On Point Contracting in Colorado.  

Tony opened the conversation with a brief explanation of the importance of snow retention, “Snow retention is mandatory in regions like mine and Nick, especially on composite and metal roofs with less friction. If it’s not there, you’re seeing snow take out gutters, landscaping, car windshields, air conditioners and more.”  

In general, there are three types of snow retention – Guards, bars and fences. Snow guards are scattered on a roof to hold snowpack in place, where bars and fences run the length of a roofline and stop snow from sliding off an edge. Determining what system is needed depends on a lot of factors, from expected snowfall to the moisture content of the snow itself. This engineering of the correct system is something that some manufacturers, like Rocky Mountain Snow Guards, help their contractors with. Nick explained:  

Typically, when we get onto a project where they don't have the correct snow retention, we try to work with Rocky Mountain Snow Guards because they can really help with the design. So, you send them photos of what's up there, what you're working with so far and they can adapt that design to fit the snow retention needs of that slope and area, et cetera. 

Tony added, “I have worked with a lot of different snow guard manufacturers over the years. Our primary source for snow retention now is Rocky Mountain Snow Guards because they not only have great products, they have great people behind them and if you have an issue, or need help like Nick mentioned, you can pick up a phone and just call somebody.” 

Want to learn more about snow retention? Listen to the whole episode!