clearing snow off the roof

[Anonymous]

How do you know if you should clear the snow off of your roof? Our house isn't new but it isnt ancient either. We bought it a couple of years ago and the roof was supposedly in great shape. The one area that I'm concerned about is the roof over our bedroom. The master bedroom is off of the main floor and there is nothing above it and the roof is flat. Should we at least clear that part off?

If you cleared your roof off, what motivated you to do so? If you decided not to, why not? Any advice? Thanks.

[Anonymous]

I decided I was far more likely to die trying to clear my roof than from the roof collapsing.

So far I have only heard about a handful of roofs collapsing, and very few of those were homes - they tended to be big institutional buildings with flat roofs like warehouses, firestations etc.
So I thought the odds of mine collapsing were negligible.

[Anonymous]

It's dangerous. Don't do it unless you suspect your roof is in poor condition. And if you suspect your roof is in poor condition, get out of your house until the snow melts.

[Anonymous]

Do you have a flat roof? That's the only thing that would make me worry.

[Anonymous]

We ended up clearing snow off of a flat portion of our roof today after water started leaking in around the top of the window sill just below it. I don't know how long it had been leaking, but when we found it, water was coming through onto the basement floor from the leak two stories above. Ugh. I concur with the others though that the danger is real, and I'd just leave it alone unless you suspect that there's significant leaking or a real risk of collapse.

[Anonymous]

Just read that actually getting on the roof to clear it could be just enough extra weight to make it cave. DO NOT get on your roof, this is dangerous. If possible, try to find a handyman and a ladder to shovel snow off the roof. And as a PP said, if you see leakage this could be a sign that the roof is in bad shape.

[Anonymous]

Also, if you hear any kind of creaking then run out of the house as fast as you can..

[Anonymous]

Can you sleep in another room? Even if the roof is in great shape, I don't know if flat roofs are built to hold the weight of 3+ feet of snow, which is what will be up there after tomorrow's storm.

[Anonymous]

Don't know if local hardware stores carry them but you could purchase a roof rake.

http://www.roofrake.com/

[Anonymous]

Do they really have flat roofs here? Whoa.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Yes, the portion of the roof that is over our bedroom is flat. That's why I'm worried. I just talked to DH and there is no way he is clearing the snow off the roof. I guess I won't worry about it unless we see signs of leaking or some other problem. I'll also consider sleeping in the guest room tomorrow night, just in case.