Roof Snow Removal in Omaha and Lincoln

Snow is weight, and how much depends on the water in it. FEMA's snow load guide, as the Department of Energy quotes it, puts a foot of light, dry snow at about 3 pounds per square foot (psf) and a foot of heavy, wet snow at about 21 psf: the same depth, seven times the weight. The Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety (IBHS) measures it by water: 10 to 12 inches of new snow holds about an inch of water and weighs about 5 psf, and so do 3 to 5 inches of old, packed snow. Two feet of old snow under two feet of new can reach 60 psf, and an inch of ice weighs about as much as a foot of fresh snow.

Omaha's residential code builds a house for a ground snow load of 25 psf, which in plain words means the design assumes about 25 pounds pressing on every square foot of ground around it. The IBHS says most sound residential roofs carry about 20 psf before they are stressed, unless the structure is already damaged or decayed. That is roughly 4 feet of fresh snow, but only about 2 feet of old, packed snow, and storms stack.

The load does not spread evenly. OSHA notes that a roof's snow load depends on drifting, on melting and freezing again, on the roof's slope and type and on its design, not only on the snow on the ground. Wind piles snow against walls, chimneys and a higher roof next door, and valleys where two slopes meet collect it.

Then it melts. Heat from the house warms the upper roof, the University of Minnesota Extension explains, while the eaves stay below freezing, so meltwater runs down and freezes again at the edge. ENERGY STAR describes the same melt freezing again at the gutters, and Triple-I names ice forming in gutters as a way water backs up under the shingles. That is where a winter leak starts, and why gutters strain under ice when the next melt has nowhere to go. Omaha's code marks ice barrier underlayment as required for exactly this reason: its own note reserves that for places with a history of local damage from ice damming.

Rocket Roofing General Contractor crews take snow and ice off roofs by hand and steam ice dams at the eaves. The safe way to do that work is set out by OSHA's hazard alert on rooftop snow removal and by the Department of Energy, and these are its steps:

• Look from the ground first. OSHA says to clear snow without people on the roof wherever that is possible, and to check that the roof can carry the workers and their equipment on top of the snow before anybody climbs.
• Fall protection for anyone who goes up. OSHA requires it for work 4 feet or more above a lower level in general industry and 6 feet or more in construction.
• Clear by hand, not down to the shingles. The DOE guide says to use plastic tools rather than metal and to leave an inch or two of snow, because scraping the shingles can loosen or break them.
• Take it off evenly. OSHA warns that snow removed from one part of a roof, or piled on it, loads one part more than the rest.
• The eaves and the valleys. That is where the melt refreezes and where drifts gather, so it is where the weight and the ice are.
• Gutters and downspouts open. A gutter packed with ice cannot carry the next melt away, so the eaves are cleared down to an open path.
• Nobody underneath. OSHA's planning questions include how people on the ground are kept clear of the snow and ice coming off the roof.
• A roof check when it is done, with photos of anything the winter did.

OSHA's hazard alert on removing snow from rooftops says falls cause most of the deaths and serious injuries in this work: people slide off roof edges, fall through skylights the snow has hidden, and fall from ladders. It also warns of electrocution near power lines and of being hit or buried by snow coming off the roof, and it says never to use a snow rake or shovel while standing on a ladder.

The University of Minnesota Extension adds two more reasons. Anyone on a winter roof, or working on one from below, risks injury, so it advises calling professionals. And a roof rake or push broom can damage the roofing it is meant to protect.

If you rake what you can reach from the ground, do it the way the roof rake guide describes, and leave the rest of the roof to a crew.

A flat or low slope roof keeps the snow that lands on it, and the wind piles more against parapets, rooftop units and any higher roof beside it. Omaha's building code sends the design snow load of a commercial building to Chapter 7 of ASCE 7, the national standard for design loads, and requires the building's construction documents to state the ground snow load, with the flat roof snow load and drift details where the ground snow load is over 10 psf. Those drawings are where a building's own number is.

Snow also hides the parts of a flat roof that matter: OSHA lists skylights, roof drains and vents among the hazards to find before work starts, and a drain or scupper buried under ice cannot carry the melt away. The flat roof snow guide covers the design loads and OSHA's rules in detail, and commercial roofing covers the TPO, EPDM and PVC roofs we install and repair.

Triple-I says a standard home policy generally covers damage when the weight of snow or ice damages the house, and most damage from a freeze, including water that backs up under roof shingles when ice forms in the gutters. It also says most policies do not cover flood damage or backups in sewers and drains. Your own policy decides, removal included, so ask your agent.

We document storm damage for insurance claims and can tarp an opening until the repair. The ice dam insurance guide explains what to photograph and what to ask, and the Nebraska roof insurance claims guide covers the claim from the adjuster's visit to the deductible.

A roof that took water behind an ice dam, or carried more snow than it was built for, is a repair and sometimes a replacement. Roof repair and replacement is the same company, and our Omaha roof replacement page explains what a replacement involves. Manufacturer warranties of up to 50 years back qualifying installations.

When a roof in Omaha is replaced, the city's residential code requires an ice barrier underlayment, which the Department of Energy describes as an extra layer against leaks when ice dams form. The ice dams themselves come from heat leaking into the attic, which the attic ventilation guide explains.

Financing is available through GreenSky. Ask about the current programs and their terms when you get your estimate, or learn more at greensky.com.