Snow & Solar
Resourceful Roofer Creates Award-Winning Project
by Marcus Dodson, Publisher
Roofing contractor Nick Piontek thinks outside-the-box. His innovative approach and resourcefulness have helped him win many project bids. Most recently he aided homeowner Stephen Perlmutter when other roofers scratched their heads and walked away.
Perlmutter’s story starts after solar panels were installed on his home in Louisville, Colorado. The following winter there were two massive snow slides off the slick panels. “They made such a roar that our neighbors came out to see what happened,” related Perlmutter. “If someone had been on that path where the four-foot mound of snow fell, there would have been a trip to the hospital or worse.”
Perlmutter contacted several roofers. Each one told him there wasn’t enough space between the lower part of the solar panels and the edge of the roof to add a snow retention system. Then he contacted Piontek at On Point Contracting out of Littleton, Colorado.
“Piontek suggested we move the panels higher on the roof, which required moving two air vent exhausts, and then adding Drift Solar Snow Fences,” said Perlmutter.
Here’s where the story gets even more interesting. Piontek advised Perlmutter his asphalt roof had hail damage. A State Farm® insurance adjuster visited and agreed. However, because it was reported just two weeks before the two-year cut-off mark for filing a claim, the insurance company wanted to deny it. That wasn’t flying with Piontek. He fought hard and won.
“State Farm paid to have the entire roof replaced,” explained Perlmutter. “That meant removing the solar panels, so Piontek moved them up the roof during reinstallation. Due to Piontek’s innovative approach to the problem and his can-do attitude, all we paid for was the moving of the air vent exhausts, the snow fence, and its installation.”
Since the Rocky Mountain Snow Guards snow fence has been installed, Perlmutter reports no snow has gotten past it. “All the snow is held back and melts naturally,” said the homeowner.
Designed specifically for snow retention below solar panel installations on shingle roofs, the 12 inch tall, four-pipe aluminum Drift Solar Snow Fence creates a catch basin for snow between the snow fence and the bottom of the solar panel array. Brackets are bolted to the roof support structure with a minimum of 12 inches between the bottom of the solar panel and the snow fence tubes.
The brackets are secured to the roof with four inch CTX self-tapping fasteners through the decking and into the trusses. Ice Screen is usually installed with the Drift Solar Snow Fence system to impede the movement of snow between the tubing. To simplify the purchasing process, all components are available from Rocky Mountain Snow Guards.
For the work on the Perlmutter project, On Point Contracting has been named the Grand Prize Winner in the category of Most Impressive Fence Style Snow Retention System Project in the 2024 Show Us Our Snow Guards Contest sponsored by Rocky Mountain Snow Guards.
