Our two-part series is on the S-5! Snow Guard Calculator. Step 1 covers exactly why it is so important to engineer your snow guard system. In Step 2, we'll explain how to log on and get started with your calculation!

Snow retention systems go by many names in the industry. Roof snow fences, snow rails, snow stops, snow stopper, snow guards, snow clips, snow bar, and more. Regardless of the phrase, the intended purpose is the same: to reduce the risks associated with rooftop avalanches. By holding back the snow and encouraging it to leave the roof slowly through small amounts or melting, damage to walls and foundations can be reduced.

This is Part Two of a two-part series on qualifying snow retention systems.

In Part 1 of What’s on Your Roof? we discussed how, unfortunately, there aren’t any snow guard police out there patrolling the industry. This creates a two-fold problem: One, that you can’t count on there being building inspectors to check a go-to-market system for structural adequacy; and two, architects and installers of these systems can potentially be sued for personal and property damage from faulty snow retention systems they specify or install.

Wanting to offset the plant’s electrical usage, and still show a return on investment, McElroy Metal chose a rail-less solar mounting solution system for its second manufacturing facility in Adelanto, CA. Secure module attachment was done with S-5! clamps and the PVKIT® - direct-attach™ system.

At S-5!, we don’t recommend installing adhesive-mounted snow guards on metal roofs. From both an economic and design perspective, glued on plastic snow guards typically have low holding strength and are unable to handle harsh weather-related elements. The bond weakens over time and when it fails, the guard can rip away paint and protective roof coatings, potentially leading to corrosion.

This is part one of a two-part series on qualifying snow retention systems.

In places where it frequently snows a lot and even in places where it doesn’t, metal is a favored material in protecting a house or other structure. On the surface, snow might appear to be rather innocuous, as it gently falls from the sky like the ending scene in the movie, White Christmas. But what the movie doesn’t show, is all through the night and much of the morning (if not longer) the light fluffy stuff piles deeper and deeper on top of the roof, incrementally increasing its own weight. Then, when the sun comes out, an avalanche of snow tumbles down onto unsuspecting persons, vehicles and landscapes below. 

When a snow avalanche falls off of a rooftop, it can damage anything in its path! This sudden release of snow can be dramatic—dumping tons of snow in mere seconds. Falling snow forms a temperature-sensitive bond to the surface of a metal roof. Then, when that roof is warmed, whether from the sun or from building heat loss, the bond between the snow bank and roof is broken and a thin film of melt water serves to lubricate the slide.

Well, you’re a loyal S-5! user and as most prudent consumers, contractors, or installers; you are looking to save money without sacrificing quality, tested performance, and ease of installation. Today, we will address questions related to the use of the S-5-V or S-5-V Mini and S-5-H90 or S-5-H90 Mini over the use of the S-5-U or S-5-U Mini clamps.

The S-5-U and S-5-U Mini clamp are versatile clamps. This clamp is designed to fit vertically-oriented seams and many of the (larger) horizontally-oriented seams. Because of this versatility there is more labor, tooling and machining involved in the manufacture of the clamp. The S-5-U clamp is machined for an M8 bolt on both the top and the side of the clamp. And there are setscrew holes on both sides. So, while the clamp fits more metal roof profiles, it also costs more to produce. 

Recently, we had a contractor using our on-line snow retention calculator ask this question.  He had done a number of planning calculations to customize applications of our ColorGard® system for a particular project, and noticed the field for “Safety Factor” on our load information table and also the calculator. What is this?  And what does it do? He wanted to know.

Is a Bigger Snow Guard Better?

There is a common perception that “more is better”, such as “two pipes are better than one” and “three are better than two”. Many believe that because a snow bank is very deep, it should have a taller snow guard system—with more cross-members.

Often, we are asked to provide localized snow guards and systems (snow retention systems) over an entranceway or several of them rather than protecting the entire eave line of a standing seam metal roof. In limited cases this can be done, but extreme caution is advised.