In almost all regions of our country, winter is not complete without a lot of precipitation, especially snow. Many of us have repeatedly admired the beauty of country houses covered with snow, with burning windows and smoking chimneys. Yes, the landscape is certainly attractive, but from the inside it looks a little different. Summer residents and homeowners themselves know firsthand how hard it is to deal with beautiful snow cover on the roof of their house. It is for them that this article will be useful, in which we will not only tell, but also describe in detail what snow retention on the roof is, and why it is necessary.
Snow - a joy or a nuisance?
Once again, winter comes, and the owners of private houses do not always have quiet days on which they can safely drink tea and sit in silence by the stove.
It is us city dwellers who are accustomed to calling public utilities if the roof leaked or hung icicles. And your home requires care and respect.
In autumn, when it rains, we are often horrified by the current ceilings, not understanding - what's the matter?
It seems that they rebuilt recently, and the coverage is expensive, and roof repair made with the latest. However, your roof needs not only repair, but also periodic, good maintenance.
Note! Many of us have heard the term "roof snow load", but few understand what it means. This means that snow is not so light as we used to think. Its accumulated mass, one meter thick per square centimeter of area, is capable of hammering a nail by the force of impact! This is how much stress your roof endures after snowfalls. It is not surprising that even the most durable and high-quality coating can be deformed from the pressure of such gravity.
Let's remember what kind of trouble snow accumulated on the roof in large quantities can bring.
- Unexpected avalanches that fall on your head at the very moment when you pass by. And it’s good if the snow mass does not contain a large amount of ice that can cripple you.
- Huge icicles falling on a car quietly parked next to the house. Small consolation if this car does not belong to you, but to a neighbor who has long been bored.
- Streams of water along the walls during the thaw. After all, no other drainage system in the world is capable of receiving such an amount of wastewater.
- Divorces on the ceiling due to a leaky roof. The snow did its job - the shift of the coating led to depressurization. And now - the result, the roof leaked from the pressure of the snow mass and the melting of snow.
- Fallen tiles. Of course, the laying masters did their job in bad faith, and as a result, the roofing fragments shifted.
- Your favorite flower bed, hand-piled this summer, has been brutally destroyed by an avalanche that fell from the roof, and will now require a major overhaul in the spring.
- Beloved mother-in-law fell heartily, walking along the icy path along the house, where icicles had fallen from the roof the day before.
All these, and many more surprises can await you if you do not take care of such a necessary thing as roof snow guards in time. They will save your car, and your flower bed, and even your beloved mother-in-law from waiting for trouble.
What are snow guards
In order to prevent snow from falling on the heads of homeowners and passers-by with a large mass, there is a simple way - a snow retainer. They are railings attached to the roofing, usually installed along the perimeter of the roof.
fasten roof snow guards during the installation of the finish coating, in those places where the accumulation of snow is most likely. Moreover, they should be installed where snow is most likely to fall and damage health or property.
When building a house, it is important to consider which side of the roof will be more covered by precipitation. Usually, the northern side of the roof is most susceptible to accumulation of snow mass.
You also need to take into account the direction of the wind, because on the leeward side, the accumulation of precipitation is minimal. From there, from where the wind usually blows, the greatest amount of snow is applied.
This means that a snow retainer for the roof must be installed, first of all, where the accumulation of a large layer of snow and ice mass is most likely.
Installation of snow retention devices is quite simple.
These accessories are attached at the time of installation of the roofing. Bars are placed under the crests of each wave of the coating. This will serve as a future device mount.
The upper edge of the snow retainer is reinforced using a bar. It is fastened with self-tapping screws to the crate along the top of each of the waves of the coating.
Note! If the snow retainer is in the form of a pipe, then it is attached, adhering to the level of the load-bearing walls, along the perimeter of the entire roof. In places of its fastening it is necessary to make a continuous crate. Then, a pipe is inserted into the hole located below. Next, the device is attached with screws or self-tapping screws into the recession of the wave through a rubber gasket to the crate itself. Now the next pipe is inserted. With each other, snow retainers are fastened with a sleeve with bolts.
If you have a ceramic tile flooring, the base plate is attached either to the crate or to a specially installed board.
This board is laid under the tiles and is attached to the bottom row of the batten directly through the tiles. Special supporting tiles for the most famous brands of coating can be easily purchased at building materials stores.
Thus, by installing an avalanche protection system on your roof in a timely manner, you will prevent a lot of trouble.
It is especially important to pay attention to what your roof is covered with and what the angle of the roofing slopes is.
Installation of snow-retaining accessories is especially necessary if:
- Your roof is covered with a metal coating that has a smooth surface.
- The angle of the slopes of your roof is 6 degrees or more.
- You care about your safety and the safety of people passing by.
- The house has a large area and, accordingly, a rather big roof.
- The region is located in places with a fairly cold climate.
- Frequent temperature fluctuations, especially in winter.
If for some reason you do not have anti-icing systems installed that heat the roof and evenly melt the snow, take care of other means.
Particular attention should be paid to smooth roofs with a steep slope. It is there that snow, freezing at low temperatures, tends to quickly melt at the slightest thaw.
The coating, thawing, gives a sliding effect, in which a mass of snow of great thickness comes off in large fragments, and can cause material or physical damage to you or completely strangers.
With seeming simplicity, snow retention on the roof can not only protect you and those passing by your house
The mass of precipitation will not only be evenly distributed over your roof, a well-installed system will not allow snow to deform the coating. What's more, melting will occur slowly without overloading the gutters and pipes.
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