Bird
Rest in Peace
I knew there was a reason I didn't want to live in the far north; we hit 70 today. And I've never had to shovel snow off the roof.
Another foot of snow today
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I knew there was a reason I didn't want to live in the far north; we hit 70 today. And I've never had to shovel snow off the roof.
Dyer retired
Gold Member
Bird said:I knew there was a reason I didn't want to live in the far north; we hit 70 today. And I've never had to shovel snow off the roof.
Bird,
70 degrees sounds like a temperature I could live with year round and you sure haven't missed anything by not shoveling snow off a roof! I'm not real good with heights, so I hate climbing the 30 foot ladder (I'm probably about 25 feet off the ground at the edge of the roof I have to climb up on, but that's higher up than I like.) I have a rappelling rope around the chimney and I tie that a couple of wraps around my waist before I start shoveling to keep from falling off. All that is really going to do though is cinch up some day when I do fall off and my wife will find me hanging from the roof, suffocated from the rope tightening around my chest. The front roof is even more miserable to deal with. I straddle the peak of the roof while I push a scoop type shovel with a 15 foot handle on it...which wants to push me off the back side of the roof. It's all fairly predictable, but then it snows, and there I go up the ladder.
It can be 30 below zero with the wind up there and somehow I come down from the roof drenched in sweat, that cools off and causes you to feel hypothermic, and you know that you'll have to do it all over again in two days. Yup, you're missing a real treat by not being in snow heaven, ha!
I got in a short road trip and got out to the Kubota Dealer today to pick up some stuff. I'm working on a solution to the shear pin problem we've talked about. When the time comes to change one out, the shaft and auger holes are next to impossible to line up and, with some help from TBN (Kevinj,) I've figured out what the root problem is.
Now I've engineered a $65.00 (so far) solution to a $1.58 problem, but it's been fun working on it during the last couple of nice days.
The driveway was an ice rink today, so I took a ride to the town dirt shed and picked up a couple of buckets of road dirt to spread on the driveway. Got that taken care of and have now spent most of tonight sharpening drill bits....the excitement is non-stop!
Stay out of that dry heat and I'll report back tomorrow....yup, another 3 inches of snow coming tonight. John
Danno1
Veteran Member
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John,
Find yourself a mountain climbing book published prior to ~1970. It will show you how to attach a rope to yourself such that it doesn't tighten under load. My explanation might not make sense but it involves taking 5-6 turns around your waist, then looping the end around that bundle, and tying a bowline. Or get a climbing harness. I've seen them fairly inexpensive at Sierra Trading Post (online store).
Also, a Prusik knot will allow you to climb back up on the roof if you were to fall and end up hanging.
.
John,
Find yourself a mountain climbing book published prior to ~1970. It will show you how to attach a rope to yourself such that it doesn't tighten under load. My explanation might not make sense but it involves taking 5-6 turns around your waist, then looping the end around that bundle, and tying a bowline. Or get a climbing harness. I've seen them fairly inexpensive at Sierra Trading Post (online store).
Also, a Prusik knot will allow you to climb back up on the roof if you were to fall and end up hanging.
.
Dyer retired
Gold Member
Danno1 said:
Danno1,
I was describing my roof adventures with a bit of tongue in cheek, but I really did do it the way I described for the first year, then realized that there would be no getting loose if I fell and that thing cinched up on me. I went to Eastern Mountain Sports and bought a harness that I just clip into now. I try not to take any more chances than I have to now because I don't seem to heal as fast as I used to and I'm not sure I would even survive a fall from that roof. This year, I've rigged up a push type shovel that I can actually keep about 10 feet back from the edge ont he front side and I started using it on the back side too. On a bad year I only have to get up there a few times, but this year (I guess would qualify as really bad) I was up there so much that I gave some thought to just pitching a tent and living there between storms, ha! Thanks for the thought and I will take a look at the book you suggested, but more for a solution to a method for giving myself some slack without sacrificing safety. Dyer, retired and on the ground today.