The snowfall this week led to chaos on the roads, and paralyzed public transport both in the east and in the west. In several places, a snow height of more than 120 centimeters has been measured. Although the worst is now over, you may need to trim your seagull muscles once again this weekend. The amount of snow on many house and cabin roofs is already approaching the critical limit. As if that wasn’t enough, the meteorologists are predicting heat and rain for the next few days. Watch out for the cabin roof – The snow gets much heavier when it rains. Older houses and cabins should be shoveled now. Roofs on homes built before 1979 withstand much less stress, says Director Per Arne Horne in the Directorate for Building Quality. Per-Arne Horne, Director of the Directorate for Building Quality. Photo: Alexander Brown / DiBK Every year, buildings suffer damage as a result of amounts of snow on the roof. Horne believes older cabins are most at risk. – People are not at the cabin very often. This year there has been a lot of snow in Sørlandet, and there are many cabins that are not well visited in winter. One should take care to shovel the cabin roof at short intervals, says Horne. It can cost you dearly to drop the seagull job. If you do not remove snow from the roof, you can get a reduction in the insurance if damages occur. How much snow your roof can withstand Houses built between 1950 and 1979 will usually be designed to withstand up to 50 cm of dry, old snow or 40 cm of wet snow on the roof. Buildings built after 1980 can withstand significantly more snow than older buildings. You can see this in the calculation basis from when the house was built. Check with your municipality if necessary. If the roof is to withstand 250 kilograms per square metre, this means that the roof can withstand 80 cm of dry, old snow or 60 cm of wet snow. A weight of 350 kilograms per square meter corresponds to 120 cm of dry, old snow or 90 cm of wet snow. Source: The Norwegian Directorate for Building Quality – Mow evenly on both sides If you are going up on the roof at the weekend, there are several things you should think about. – You must remember to secure yourself, so that you do not fall from the roof. It is also important to shovel evenly, so that not only one side is left with a lot of snow at the end. Then you get a skewed load. In addition, you should leave some snow behind, so that you don’t damage the roofing felt or tiles, says Horne. – Worse than last year Stian Bjerkgård runs Vegglifjell cabin service. He has received several inquiries from cabin owners who want help clearing snow from the cabin roof. General manager Stian Bjerkgård at Vegglifjell cabin service. Photo: Private – We have received 20–30 inquiries since Christmas, says Bjerkgård. It is still nothing compared to last year. – Then there was much more snow on the mountain, and many had to wait a long time before they got help, says Bjerkgård. He still encourages people to check the cabin. – It is still quite early in the winter, and another meter can quickly come. In several cabins, the snow has piled up on one side, which puts pressure on the construction. Don’t wait too long, says Bjerkgård.
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– Now you should shovel the roof – news Buskerud – Local news, TV and radio
