Bulldog Roofing Wins Award for Solar Snow Retention Project

Colorado contractor recognized for snow guard installation at affordable housing complex

snow rretention system and solar installed on shingle roof — Rocky Mountain Snow Guards

Bulldog Roofing earned top honors in Rocky Mountain Snow Guards’ 2026 “Show Us Our Snow Guards Contest” for a Colorado affordable housing project where the contractor installed a snow retention system beneath rooftop solar panels to help protect residents and visitors from falling snow and ice.

The roofing company installed Drift Solar Snow Fence products below solar panels on the roofs of three buildings at the affordable housing complex in their hometown of Longmont, Colo. The Ascent at Hover Crossing comprises 75 apartment units plus an Early Childhood Education Center that serves local families in need. The 2.4-acre site also includes a standalone building with a community room, fitness space, mail room, leasing office, maintenance and storage area, and an adjacent outdoor area with a playground and gathering space with barbecue equipment.

The structure is designed to meet National Green Building Standard (NGBS) Bronze standards for sustainability and is 100 percent electric. The City of Longmont-owned onsite 211kW rooftop solar project reduces residents' electric costs.

Solar Panels Demand Snow Retention

Bulldog Roofing installed the TPO roofing, IKO Nordic Performance Shingles, metal roofing, coping, gutters and downspouts on the project. Once the solar panels were installed, the need for snow retention was identified and coordinated between project ownership, architect Van Meter Williams Pollack LLP and Bulldog Roofing.

We were looking at solar panels on three-story structures potentially shedding snow and ice from their slick surfaces,” said Adam Gazdik, director of operations for Bulldog Roofing. “Our company recommended Drift Solar Snow Fences from Rocky Mountain Snow Guards as a solution. We use their snow retention products on about a dozen projects a year and the Drift Solar seemed like the perfect resolution to a potential wintertime problem.”

The 12-inch tall Drift Solar system is designed specifically for placement below solar panel installations. Aluminum four-pipe fence-style brackets are bolted directly to roof support structures flush at the eave with the tubing side facing down slope. Ice screen must be added to impede the movement of the snow. When choosing the color for the snow fence, the architectural firm selected black to complement the solar panels.

The Ascent at Hover Crossing in Longmont, Colo., includes 75 apartment units and an Early Childhood Education Center. Photo: Rocky Mountain Snow Guards.

“For our team, the biggest challenge of this project was that both the roofing system and solar panels had already been installed by the time it was decided to add the snow retention system,” said Gazdik. “We installed the Drift Solar Snow Fence product based on placement direction from the project architect. From our standpoint, locating the structural trusses for proper attachment was the most difficult part, especially because there was limited space to work around the existing solar panels.

“While this is was our first time installing the Drift Solar Snow Fence, we certainly hope it won’t be our last. It’s a smart product that fills the need for snow retention when solar panels are used, and for this particular project, it’s helping keep residents and guests at Ascent at Hover Crossing safer during the winter months.”