Snow Shed Roof

When the snow piled up on the roof melting occurred and ice dams resulted in water ponding 3 inches deep.

Snow shed roof.

Pooling water on a roof can cause leaks and other damage. The higher the roof pitch the more often the snow slides off. It makes sense when designing a metal roof to shed snow not to keep it on. Your equation for determining snow load s x 1 25 p is fairly straightforward math.

It does shed rain and snow shed more easily with the greater slope. S equals the depth in inches of the snow on your roof and p represents the pounds per square foot your roof is supporting. Some metal building manufacturers will not warranty a roof with a 1 4 inch slope. A stick framed roof uses 2x4 s or 2x6 s or whatever you are framing with but has a ridge board running down the middle ridge line.

People have been killed by snow avalanches sliding off roofs during big snow winters. With expansion and contraction of the metal it is difficult to attach snow retention devices into the roof decking without causing a roof leak or slotting of the metal panel from the snow bracket fastener. We counted 90 stalagmites on the surface of the ice rink from drips coming from the leaking roof. Lots of built up snow adds extra weight to the roof that can also cause damage so shedding water and snow more efficiently is a definite advantage.

Lifetime shed from 16 psf without a snow load kit to 30 psf with snow load kit reinforcements. You then have rafters running down from this ridge board and resting on the top wall plates. A snow shed snow bridge or avalanche gallery is a type of rigid snow supporting structure for avalanche control avalanche defense or to maintain passage in areas where snow removal becomes almost impossible. To calculate the snow load on your roof assume that every inch deep of snow equals 1 25 pounds.

Slopes greater than 6 12 will tend to shed snow regardless of the texture of the material on them so roof slopes should be configured to avoid shedding anywhere people might be walking or exiting. Needed for severe weather conditions only. It has a lower profile than the skillion or gable so may be more suitable to some neighborhoods. A simple roof to construct but slightly more expensive than the skillion due to the lower slope needing waterproofing.

This snow load kit is not necessary under normal snowfall conditions. Metal roofs leak under these circumstances. Sometimes the rafter will have a tail and extend out past the wall so that you have a soffit or overhang. They can be made of steel prestressed concrete frames or timber.

These structures can be fully enclosed like an artificial tunnel or consist of lattice like elements.