Safety First

by Stacy Rinella | March 27, 2025 7:29 am

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Marco Lujan does not take any chances with melting snows causing potential injury or property damage on the metal roofs he installs. The Colorado-based roofer insists his clients use snow retention systems that slowly release the snow from metal rooftops.

For a recent high-profile project in the heart of the Steamboat Springs ski area, Lujan, director of services for Revelation Roofing LLC, relied on the free layout and quote services of Rocky Mountain Snow Guards to come up with an initial snow retention plan for a metal/asphalt roof.

“We used this service for about 40 projects last year, which allows us to build our systems with confidence,” says Lujan. “For this project we used 2,200 snow guards and 137 m (450 lineal ft) of snow fences. Then, after that added a heating cable to keep the roof eaves and gutters warm enough to stop ice from forming and building up on the roofs. We kept the cable in place with roof clips and heat tape.”

 

Safety first

The extensive effort Lujan and other roofers take to assure snow and ice are retained and allowed to melt from roofs is done strategically. The process is calculated based on roofing material, roof pitch, and normal area snow load to help prevent tragic avalanches of accumulated winter precipitation that can damage property, injure pets and people, and in some cases, cause death.

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With safety at the forefront of every consideration for snow retention work for both roofers and specifiers, March is National Snow Guard Safety Month. This month, the entire industry is turning its attention to not only making roofs safer but educating consumers on why snow retention systems are essential for those living in areas with significant snowfall. This is especially true if homeowners have certain types of roofing, like slate, synthetic, and metal roofs.

“Metal roofs are one of the slipperiest surfaces when the sun comes out and snow starts to melt,” says Lars Walberg, president of Rocky Mountain Snow Guards. “Unless there is a deliberately thought-out snow retention system in place, there is nothing to stop the thawing snows from simply sliding off the roof in mass quantities.”

That’s why various snow retention companies offer snow fences, snow bars, and snow guards that work especially well on metal roofs. There are also ice flags and ice screens.

 

Key differences explained

A quick education on the differences between these pieces goes as follows:

Snow guards: Individual small and large (low and large profile) snow guards can be attached in a pattern, usually to the flat part of a metal roof but sometimes clamped to the seam. They can be installed on standing seam panel roofs, through fastened metal panel roofs, and on most metal shingles. Oftentimes they are installed in a “Soldier Row” pattern, placed 305 mm (12 in.) apart horizontally on a roof, for the most effective way to hold snow.

Bar-style system: A continuous length of rectangular metal “bar” that is installed horizontally across the metal roof to form a barrier to snow and ice. The product looks very clean and modern on a roof. Depending on the pitch of the roof, the distance from the eave to the peak, and the snow load present, often only one bar is needed. Some projects require several rows to handle the load.

Fence-style system: Two or more tubes vertically oriented like a split rail fence. These systems are often used on custom homes and in situations where a less modern appearance is desired. Two methods of attachment are used. One is a screw or lag bolt that attaches the snow fence bracket to the roof structure. The other is a clamp attached.

Ice flags: When the seam height is 38 mm (1.5 in.) or more on snow fence and snow bar systems, these pieces prevent snow and ice chunks from slipping under the fence or bar.

Ice screen: For snow fences to help keep ice and snow above the fence, especially on eaves above high-traffic areas, where even the smallest release can be problematic. Especially helpful in conjunction with solar snow fences.

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Shiny copper roofs

While most people immediately think of standing seam roofs when the topic of metal roofing is brought up, there is also a growing trend toward specialty metal roofs. Tops on that list are copper roofs.

Durable and aesthetically unmatched by any other material, copper can serve as both a full roof or, in accent areas. Whether horizontal seam, mansard roofing, or long pan systems, copper has the initial glow and eventual patina, making it shine as a masterpiece on a project. However, it is also as slick as other metals and needs snow retention attention.

The team at Umbrella Roofing in Eagle, Colorado, used their talents to install an impressive full copper roof on a residential property last year including a unique spiral turret. For the home, the roofers had a customized snow retention plan that called for copper snow guards and snow fencing. They also used a clamp-to-seam fence in copper.

“Together the snow retention system works beautifully to accent the roof while providing much-needed protection for the homeowners during heavy winter snowfalls,” according to Josh Yandle with Umbrella Roofing.

According to Walberg, his company has experienced an annual growth of 20 percent per year of copper snow retention products over the last 10 years. He relates that most of the sales are on higher-end homes and commercial buildings, like the University of Denver, where the majority of the campus has copper standing seam roofing.

“Resort areas like Vail, Aspen, and Big Sky have a large base of copper projects,” says Walberg. “However, we’ve also worked on a project in Iceland where an architect specified a large quantity of copper snow guards. Moving into 2025, copper is the metal to watch as it plays a larger role in roofing designs.”

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Brian Cross is the product development manager at Rocky Mountain Snow Guards[6]. He is involved in all aspects of the business at Rocky Mountain Snow Guards and has been with the company for five years. He provides free training classes to individuals and companies on snow retention systems, works in the sales and marketing arenas and is heavily involved in product and technology development.

Source URL: https://www.metalarchitecture.com/articles/safety-first/

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