A roof rake is a long pole with a wide head that pulls snow off the lower part of a roof while you stand on the ground. In a Minnesota winter it’s the one roof job most homeowners can do themselves, as long as it stays that simple. The steps below follow University of Minnesota Extension, the Minnesota Department of Commerce, the U.S. Department of Energy and OSHA: when raking is worth doing, how to do it without hurting yourself or the shingles, and the signs that mean you should put the rake down and call someone.
What a roof rake is for
Ice dams need snow on the roof, so pulling the snow off the lower edge takes away one of the things they need. University of Minnesota Extension lists it as a short-term step against ice dams, along with a warning that a roof rake can damage roofing materials.
The second job is weight. On a roof that is older, damaged or carrying an unusual load, taking snow off lightens it. Both jobs happen from the ground, which is the point. If you see ice along the roof edge after storms, the lower few feet of roof are where the rake earns its keep.
Do you need to rake at all?
Often not for weight. The U.S. Department of Energy’s Building America Solution Center says most house roofs, unless damaged or decayed, should carry about 20 pounds per square foot of snow before they’re stressed, and that clearing usually isn’t needed except on older homes, roofs built to doubtful standards, or after an extraordinary buildup of heavy snow.
Snow weight varies a lot. The same source puts a foot of light, dry snow at about 3 pounds per square foot and a foot of heavy, wet snow at about 21, and says an inch of ice weighs about as much as a foot of fresh snow.
Minnesota’s building code sets a ground snow load of 50 or 60 pounds per square foot depending on the county. That’s a design value for new buildings, not a measure of what your roof holds today, so check the figure for your area on the Minnesota page and treat it as background. For ice dams, raking the eaves after a big snowfall helps whatever the roof can carry.
Pick a roof rake that reaches from the ground
The rake has one requirement that matters more than the rest: it has to reach the lower roof from where you stand. If you’d need a ladder to reach the snow, the rake is too short or the job is too big.
Gentleness is the other test. Extension warns that raking can damage roofing. The Department of Energy warns that scraping shingles could loosen or break them, and advises leaving an inch or two of snow when shoveling a roof. Give a rake the same margin: one you can control at full length, without bearing down on the shingles, does both jobs.
How to use a roof rake safely
- Look up first. Find every power line, including the one to the house. Worker-safety guidance based on OSHA’s says to keep snow rakes 10 feet from overhead lines and to use nonconductive poles.
- Clear the drop zone. The same guidance warns that people on the ground can be trapped under falling snow, and says to keep everyone 10 feet back from where it will land.
- Stay on the ground, and out of the drop zone yourself.
- Pull small amounts. OSHA’s guidance is to remove a little at a time so you don’t strain or get hit by falling snow.
- Start at the edge and work up. Clear the lower roof first, since that’s where ice dams form.
- Leave an inch or two. Stop short of the shingles rather than scraping them clean.
- Protect your eyes and head when ice is coming down with the snow.
Never rake from a ladder or the roof
OSHA’s hazard alert on rooftop snow removal says a snow rake or shovel used from a ladder greatly increases the risk of losing your balance and falling. Extension warns that anyone working on a roof in winter, or on it from below, risks injury and damage to the roof and house. Commerce suggests hiring a professional snow remover, especially once the job needs a ladder or someone on the roof. If the snow you need to move is out of reach from the ground, that’s the answer.
Warning signs that mean stop and get out
The Department of Energy, citing FEMA, lists the signs of too much snow on a structure: sagging ceilings or roof framing, creaking or cracking sounds, doors or windows that suddenly won’t open or close, and new cracks in walls, ceilings or framing. If you see them, it says to leave the building and call a qualified professional such as a professional engineer. Don’t keep raking. More on this in heavy snow on the roof.
When to hire roof snow removal instead
Hire it out when the snow you need to move is beyond reach from the ground, or when the roof shows any of the warning signs. The Department of Energy suggests licensed, insured roof snow removal experts.
Compare businesses on the roof snow removal page, or go straight to the Minnesota businesses that list roof snow removal.
If ice dams form anyway
A roof rake moves snow, not ice. Once a dam has formed and water is getting in, Commerce advises a professional ice dam removal service that uses steam, and warns that chippers, chemicals and heat damage shingles and gutters. How to remove ice dams walks through it, and the ice dam removal page lists the businesses.
Raking every storm treats the symptom. The heat that melts the snow comes from the house, and how to prevent ice dams covers sealing and insulating the attic so the roof stays cold.
Use your roof rake from the ground, or not at all
From the ground, after heavy snow, pulling small amounts and leaving an inch or two on the shingles: that’s the whole job a roof rake does well. Anything that needs a ladder, or a roof that’s creaking, belongs to a crew.