DIY Snow Diverter for Roof Vents and Flues

Where we live we get insane amounts of snow - or we've been unlucky up to this point for the two years we've owned this place... I hope it's the latter.

Since having the place the bracing for the roof vents and flues have broken three times (when we bought it they were broken from the previous winter). The snow is just so heavy and as it slides against the bracing and the vents it puts so much stress and pressure on them that it literally shears the screw heads right off and makes a pretzel out of the bracing.

To make matters worse our roof pitch on our humble 728 sq/ft log cabin is a 4/12 (not as steep as it probably should be). Which means our roof does not shed snow like our neighbors homes do. Plus, this winter was the first that I had removed most of our rain gutters because that is also a reason why so much snow stays on our roof. They also break every winter.

Anyway, I decided enough is enough and research a bunch of products online that claim to solve this issue. I found a few designs that I liked and those products were all in the range between $130-$300 for ONE SNOW DIVERTER. Outrageous.

So naturally I found a product that seemed like something I could build myself and headed to the hardware store. I found a few brackets, nuts, washers, and bolts that fit with some sealant and some steel wiring to attach to the flues and I was ready to go. All in all it cost me about $65. I could definitely make this cost less but cutting my costs in half is a good start.

Cost: $89.95 + shipping = $130 (for me at least)

This is what I ended up getting to build the one pictured above:

Don't mind the $9.98 at the top, kids wanted to get some "worker gloves".

To put in simple terms, I got a 90 degree bracket with pre-driller holes along with two straight brackets at 10" and 14". I used these three brackets to create a right triangle using the nuts and bolts also listed. then I got three lag screws with washers along with roofing sealant to fasten my contraption to the roof.

How I attached the DIY snow diverter for roof vents and flues was using the 1/16th wire and wire rope clip to loop through the snow diverter and wrap around the affected vent.

Once I had it attached I could already tell it is NOT GOING ANYWHERE! It is so much strong than anything I've used in the past or seen. The idea is that the snow diverter will cut the snow as it slides toward the edge of the roof so instead of sliding and piling against the vent it will slide off to the sides in two pieces avoiding the vent altogether.

Take a look at this video:

Time will tell, like the video says, but I'm confident this one will not fail nor break or get damaged. I'll review this after this winter is over (we're half way through now) and review again after next year's full winter.

Let me know in the comments what you think of this contraption and if you think it will last or not.