Snow Guards & Snow Retention in Aspen, CO

Hold the snowpack where it lands. Mechanical snow retention is the code-recognized way to stop a roof avalanche onto walkways, lower roofs and neighboring property.

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Fall installation before the first storm cycle
Clamp-On Metal Systems
Engineered Layouts
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Fall Installation

Get a Snow Retention Quote in Aspen

Tell us the roof material and pitch and we will get you a layout and a price. Call (970) 236-7078.

  • Clamp-on guards — no penetrations on standing seam
  • Layouts calculated from pitch, span and snow load
  • Retrofit to existing roofs where framing allows
  • Paired with heat cable where drainage needs it

Snow Guards & Snow Retention in Aspen, Colorado

Snow guards hold the snowpack on your roof so it melts and releases gradually instead of coming off all at once. In Aspen that is not a cosmetic preference — it is how you keep several tons of snow from landing on a walkway, an entry, a lower roof, a parked car or a neighbor's property.

The Code Reason, Specifically

Pitkin County adds a snow shed design provision to the adopted building and residential codes. It reads: “Roofs shall be designed so that they do not shed ice and snow onto the main path of egress to the public way, upon the public way or upon neighboring property.” The first listed exception is roofs with mechanical snow retention devices secured to roof framing members or to solid blocking, installed per the manufacturer's instructions or designed by a licensed structural engineer.

The other exceptions are worth knowing, because they explain why not every roof in the valley has guards on it: roof areas with a horizontal dimension of no more than 48 inches that will not receive snow shedding from a higher roof; re-roofing of legally existing roofs not framed to allow effective installation of retention devices; and asphalt shingle roofs with a pitch of 6:12 or less. Your local building department is the authority on how this applies to a specific address — this is orientation, not a code ruling.

Snow Guards vs. Snow Fence vs. Snow Rail

Metal roofs are common in Aspen and they shed dramatically — a snow slab on a slick metal surface releases fast, all at once, and with enormous energy. That combination is exactly why snow retention matters more here than in most of the country.

Layout Is Calculated, Not Eyeballed

How many guards, in how many rows, and where, comes out of roof pitch, the ridge-to-eave length of the roof plane, the design snow load and the tested holding capacity of the specific product. Manufacturers publish layout tables for this. The classic failure is a single row of guards at the eave on a long, steep roof: the full weight of the plane loads one row, and the row rips out — taking roofing with it.

Snow Retention and Ice Dams Together

Holding snow on the roof means it stays where a warm roof deck can melt it from below, so on a house with an existing heat-loss problem, retention can make ice dams worse. The answer is to treat them as one project: retention to control the release, plus attic air sealing, insulation and ventilation, plus heat cable at the eave where drainage needs guaranteeing. Doing retention alone on a roof that already dams is how people end up unhappy with snow guards.

Snow Guard Installation Across the Valley

Snow guards and snow retention in Aspen, Snowmass Village, Woody Creek, Old Snowmass, Basalt, El Jebel, Carbondale and Glenwood Springs. Like heat cable, this is fall work — installation on a dry, snow-free roof is safer, faster and cheaper than anything attempted mid-winter.

Snow Coming Off Your Roof in One Piece?

Get a free snow retention assessment for your Aspen roof before somebody is standing under it.

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Snow Guards & Snow Retention — Common Questions

Are snow guards required in Aspen?

Not universally, but the adopted code effectively pushes you toward them. Pitkin County adds a snow shed design provision requiring that roofs be designed so they do not shed ice and snow onto the main path of egress to the public way, onto the public way, or onto neighboring property. Roofs with mechanical snow retention devices secured to framing or solid blocking are the first listed exception. There are others — small roof areas under 48 inches, re-roofing of existing roofs not framed for retention devices, and asphalt shingle roofs pitched 6:12 or less. Your building department is the authority on your specific roof.

What is the difference between snow guards and a snow fence?

Snow guards are individual pieces — pads, cleats or brackets — distributed across the roof plane in a pattern so the snowpack grips in many places. A snow fence or rail is a continuous bar or pipe system running horizontally across the roof, usually near the eave. Rails handle heavier loads and are common on metal roofs in deep-snow country; distributed guards suit shingle roofs and lighter loads. Plenty of Aspen roofs use both.

Will snow guards make my ice dams worse?

They can, if the roof already has a heat-loss problem. Holding snow on the roof means holding it where a warm roof deck can melt it. That is an argument for fixing attic air sealing, insulation and ventilation alongside — and often for heat cable at the eave — not an argument for letting a roof avalanche onto your walkway.

Can snow guards be added to an existing roof?

Usually yes. On a standing-seam metal roof, clamp-on guards attach to the seams without penetrating the panel at all — genuinely the cleanest retrofit in the business. On shingle roofs, retrofit guards are adhered or fastened and flashed. The real constraint is framing: retention devices transfer the snow load into the structure, so they have to land on something that can take it.

How many snow guards do I need?

It is calculated, not guessed — from roof pitch, the length of the roof plane from ridge to eave, the design snow load, and the specific product's tested holding capacity. Manufacturers publish layout tables for exactly this. A single row of guards at the eave on a long steep roof is the classic under-design, and it fails by ripping out.

What happens if snow slides off my roof onto a neighbor's property?

That is precisely what the county's snow shed provision is written to prevent, and it can become both a liability and a code compliance problem. Roof avalanches in this valley break decks, crush landscaping, destroy parked vehicles and injure people. It is not a theoretical concern.

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