Alpine SnowGuards

Alpine SnowGuards has evolved into an employee-owned company built by its founder, Brian Stearns, a roofer who established Vermont Slate & Copper, Inc. in 1983. Doing business as Alpine SnowGuards since 1993, employee-owners design, engineer and manufacture over 50 snow and solar snow management systems for all roof types, new or retrofit.

Alpine’s snow guards are shipped from our manufacturing and performance testing facility in Vermont across North America - from the snowiest regions in Maine and the mid-Atlantic westward to Calgary, Colorado and California. Architecturally notable projects include:

• Beaver Creek Resort, CO
• B&O Railroad Museum, MD
• Candler Building, NYC
• The Coloradan, CO
• Fieldhouse, South Kingston, RI
• Flight Safety International, OH
• Museum of the Bible, DC
• Sheffield House, Berkshires, MA
• Snowmass Village, CO
• Taos Ski Valley, NM
• US Army School of Warfare, VT
• University of Notre Dame, IN

Success is Judged by Performance

It all began with one Stearns’ design: a handmade copper snow guard for natural slate. Its early success inspired a series of proven designs that helped grow the business into the industry leader it is today.

Success is judged by snow guard performance. Alpine conducts regular structural testing, has dedicated 16 roof types to test snow guards on a variety of roofing materials, and partners with leading manufacturers like DaVinci, EcoStar and Ludowici. In addition, Alpine contracts with MicroClimate Ice and Snow and New Hudson Facades for specialized, third-party testing.

Safety is a Core Component

Safety is a core component of Alpine’s product development. Snow guards are essentially safety devices to mitigate the risk of avalanching rooftop snow. Understanding climate and snow behavior on natural and composite tiles leads to solutions that satisfy any aesthetic - from historic buildings to modern, thermally efficient construction.

Insights Lead to Valuable Resources

Insights gathered from Alpine’s snow guard performance testing have led to valuable resources: an online calculator that enables architects, contractors and roofers to perform their own engineering calculations; a searchable database of snow guards paired with specific roofing profiles from over 80 manufacturers; and most recently, a solar snow guard calculator for Alpine’s first-to-market solar snow retention system.

Expert Guidance

Alpine’s in-house customer service team is fully-equipped with the tools and knowledge to expertly guide customers to the best system for their specific conditions. Customers routinely order by the linear foot or rely upon our team for the most complex installations. With ready access to Alpine’s technical sales manager, customers are assured of Alpine’s ability to create custom solutions when the need arises.

Performance-Based Recommendations

Alpine’s comprehensive installation instructions provide standard snow guard layout options for guidance and, upon request, recommended layouts are complimentary. By following Alpine’s recommendations, over 1.5 million linear feet have been installed with no reported failures.