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In winter, in regions where there is a large amount of precipitation, there is an acute issue of cleaning the roofs of buildings from snow. A large accumulation threatens an avalanche, from which people may suffer. A hand tool helps to get rid of the snow cover. There are many different prefabricated scrapers and shovels available. Many craftsmen have learned to adapt for snow removal make from the roof yourself. Now we will review the snow removal equipment that will help solve this problem in winter.
Snow shovels
With the arrival of the first snowfall, each owner of his yard goes out into the street with a shovel to clear the paths. There are many options for this popular tool. The shovels are sold in different sizes:
- The most comfortable and lightest snow blower models are made of plastic. The disadvantage of such shovels is increased fragility in the cold, or they simply break from heavy loads.
- Metal shovels are quite sturdy but heavy. Wet snow will constantly stick to the scoop. But most importantly, a steel tool can damage the roofing.
- Wooden shovels are more gentle to the roof covering. However, the service life of such a tool is not long.
- Aluminum shovels are lightweight, durable, and do not corrode. Some owners do not like them because of the generated rumble during the removal of snow from the roof.
The advantage of using shovels when cleaning the roof from snow is the availability and versatility of hand tools: the owner went out into the yard - cleared the paths, climbed onto the roof - freed the roof from snow. There is a shovel in every yard. In extreme cases, this tool for little money can be bought at the nearest store.
The disadvantage of using shovels is hard physical labor. On a roof with a soft roof, snow must be cleaned carefully, otherwise there is a risk of damage to the coating.
Modern snow shovel powered by electricity
An electric tool will help to quickly deal with snow accumulation on the roof. It comes in the form of a small, long-arm shredder, or a compact but more bulky machine. Both power tools are commonly used for cleaning flat roofs. You can try to drag the shredder onto a pitched roof with a slight slope, but such work is dangerous. An electric snow blower in the private sector is advisable to use for removing snow that has fallen from the roof near the building. Utilities work with this technique on the flat roof of high-rise buildings.
The advantage of electrical equipment is the ability to quickly clean the roof from any thickness of snow cover. Working with a shredder or machine is much easier than throwing snow with a conventional shovel.
The main disadvantage is the inability to use an electric shovel on a pitched roof. The device of any such technique assumes the presence of an electric motor, which has an impressive weight. Tightening the shredder or machine to the roof is quite problematic. In addition, you have to take care of a long cable. The wire must be constantly monitored so that it does not fall under the knives of the operating mechanism.
Despite all the flaws electric shovels are ideal tools for cleaning large flat roofs. A snowblower with a screw knife easily cuts off a layer of snow with an icy crust and throws it far to the side through the outflow sleeve.
The scraper is a great tool for clearing snow from pitched roofs
It is impossible to clean the pitched roof from snow with an electric tool, and it is dangerous with an ordinary shovel. It is easy to fall off a slippery slope. It is best to clean the pitched roof from the ground. There is a special tool for this work - a scraper. Its design resembles a reduced size scraper.
The base of the scraper is a long handle that allows you to reach from the ground to the very ridge of the roof. The design of the scraper itself can be of different configurations, but usually it consists of an arc with a bridge. This frame is attached to the handle. A long strip of elastic, non-soaking material is fixed to the lintel. During work, a person pushes the scraper up the roof slope with the handle. The lower crosspiece of the frame cuts the layer of snow, and it slides along an elastic strip to the ground. The width and depth of the grip depends on the dimensions of the scraper.
The advantages of working with a scraper are obvious. The lightweight tool allows you to effortlessly clean a large pitched roof without climbing on it. By extending the handle, you can reach the highest point of the roof from the ground. Snow slides down an elastic strip under the wall of the house and it is unlikely that it gets on the head of a working person.
The disadvantage of the tool is its limited use. Apart from cleaning the pitched roof from snow, the scraper can no longer be used anywhere.
The video demonstrates how the roof is cleared of snow:
Self-made shovel
The snow shovel device is very simple. Such a tool can be assembled in a couple of hours from the material available at home.
The most common is the plywood tool. The scoop is made in the following order:
- Take a piece of plywood sheet. A square measuring 40x40 or 45x45 cm is cut out of it with a jigsaw.
- A board 10 cm wide and 2 cm thick is nailed to one side of the plywood. This will be the rear edge of the scoop. From below, the board can be rounded off with a plane. Then the scoop will turn out to be curved, as shown in the diagram. A small depression is cut out in the center of the side, which forms a seat for the cutting.
- The plywood end of the front of the scoop is sheathed with a bent galvanized strip. Similar strips can be used to strengthen the rear side.
The metal scoop is made according to a different principle. Usually, aluminum sheet or galvanized steel is used for manufacturing:
- A square is similarly cut out of the selected metal sheet. Here you need to take into account the dimensions of the working canvas itself, plus the folds for the sides.
- The back element of the scoop can be cut from the board, as was done for the plywood counterpart. It is easier to simply bend all the sides out of metal. Then a hole for the handle is cut in the center of the back element.
After any scoop design is ready, proceed to fixing the handle. The shank can be bought new or removed from another shovel. One end of it is cut off at an angle so that its end fits snugly against the plane of the scoop strictly in the center. In this case, the handle itself should touch the seat on the back board. The end of the handle is attached to the working plane of the scoop with a self-tapping screw, plus reinforced with a sheet of tin. If the back side was bent out of metal, then the handle is simply wound up through the drilled hole. The handle is fixed to the wooden board with a strip of steel strip.
Homemade snow cleaning tools are exclusive. They can be of the most unusual design. The main thing is that the tool does not pose a danger to the working person and the roofing itself.
