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After working with the rope-grab + a friction device (the figure-8 and my new Petzl Pirana) and then going back to the Gri-Gri, I still prefer the Gri-Gri unless the roof is only moderately steep.

But I'm glad I worked out a solution for a controlled descent with rope-grab on a very steep roof.  It's a personal decision and I think anyone working with Rope & Harness will evolve something they are comfortable with.

If a ground auger is not the way to tie off suggestions of what will work will be appreciated.

Hi Jim, actually that issue has been pretty "aired out" previously on this thread (and it may have been touched on during this other thread http://www.catadjuster.org/Forums/t...spx )

I have brought those augers with me but never had to use them. Seems there is always some very substantial hedge/bush to wrap webbing around the base.  I personally believe a substantial bush is going to be anchored in the dirt a lot better than something I am going to superficially screw in the ground - and there always seems to be a decent bush.

Very often there is a deck with support posts (4x4's) accessible below the deck if no railing above it.  I have been on some very deteriorated decks where I tied off to several places and did not rely on one tie-off point.

Don't forget about fencing, and that has been mentioned before. You can push webbing around the 4x4 there is always a place where the post deviates from the panels. Again, you can tie off to more than one post and run that webbing through the end of your rope.  Webbing is fairly cheap, you will want to get pieces cut in various lengths.

I have tied off to my vehicle on rare occasion (only keys in my pocket) and have brought large water containers but never needed to fill them up.

Start visualizing where you would tie-off to on every house you walk up to this coming week, it won't be an issue anymore.

larry- do you tie off so you don't fall of the bar stool?

I guess I am old and not up on new techniques, but how does one inspect a roof with 30 inches of powder snow on it. Please pass on your technique.

Well I own a pair of Cougar Paws and earn my living selling roofs and I can tell you for a fact that the best protections against falling are:

1. Rope & Harness

2. A Cushion from a sofa that you can buy for only $33 from roofing supply store.  This is far superior to $160 cougar paws!  You can be on a roof with granules running off it that makes it as slippery as being on ice.  You will still slide down this roof wearing your $160 couger paws!  BUT YOU WILL NOT SLIDE DOWN THIS ROOF SITTING ON YOUR $33 CUSHION!  That cushion grabs onto those shingles like you wish your expensive cougar paws would.

3. Cougar Paws.

If you are like me: 47 years old.  6'4" and weigh 260 pounds you do NOT want to fall.  So I use all 3.  Cause I am SCARED and do NOT want to fall.  Even with a rope and harness you are still safer if you include using the cushion.  Also learning how to use ascenders and descenders would defnitely be a good thing.  I am planning to take K Squared's class one day.  I do understand how some people can dislike Kevin sometimes cause he can be a prick if he is irritated.  But he did make a lot of effort and go through a lot of expense to create his training facility.  It is also a fact that a lot of other facilities did rip off his training methods and techniques which can cause some bitterness.

Anyway...  I did hear that E.A. Renfro based in AL has a rope and harness school and you can attend it and earn $250 per days as part of a rope and harness team that handles State Farm Steep Roof inspections.

Bob H:  "Confucious say falling on ass is better than falling off roof."  LMAO

That confucious fella is pretty damn smart!

Does Anyone Know How to Protect Your Rope On the Roof?  How do you keep your rope from getting roof/asphalt tar on it while you drag it over, around and across the roof?   Some guy at Home Depot suggested a protective coating similiar to a garden hose to protect the rope.  However, if a person were to incorporate a plastic rope coating would it prevent a rope grab or ascender/descender from working?

Also I did put a 6 foot piece of hose over my rope hoping the have it cover the roof ridge but it never works out because the plastic hose rarely stays in place.  One adjuster suggested the plumbing pipe insulation as covers but they break too easily. 

Anyway...  I am looking forward to some good advice on this matter.  

Bob,

What is up with attaching to the chimney?  I was told not to do that ever.  Maybe you can get away with it but I am 260lbs so I am gonna stick to a tree or my van.  Also I gotta tell you that the $33 sofa cushion that a Mexican roofer let me borrow is Hands Down Superior to Cougar Paws.  I was on an 11/12 pitched roof with cougar paws and was slipping down the slope back into the valley.  The Mexican guy was wearing tennis shoes that cost $12 at Walmart and using the $33 sofa cushion from the roofing supply store and never budged at all.  He had two of them and let me borrow one.  It is a lot better than cougar paws!  I am still using cougar paws and a rope but I am planning to go buy me one of thsoe $33 cushions very soon!

I had a guy from Guatemala teach me how to use the cushions. They work great!  You just sit on it and bounce around the roof.  It holds like you wish your coaugar paws would hold.  It just GRIPS the Shingles and it does NOT matter at all if the granules are running down that roof like water you will not slip. Try walking on the same roof with your cougar paws and you better have a rope attached to you!

I think I read in an insurance book that emotional trauma is recoverable as general damages?  Also the difference between Property and Liability insurance is that you cannot buy the home or boat,  that you want without insurance unless you pay in cash.  You cannot drive a car off the lot without liability insurance as the dealer will NOT allow you to becuase it is illegal and apparently they will be held responsible.  How do I know this for a fact?  Well because the dealer will not allow you to drive off the lot unless you have PROOF OF LIABILITY INSURANCE and that is IF you buy the car in cash.  Of course if you must finance the car then you must also have physical damage insurance.

Now the similiarity between a bank robber and a person who did not have liability insurance at the time of accident is because they both regretted what they did - After the Fact.  Which of course is too late.

I see no reason why the information given in any way causes any harm to anyone. If an IA takes a photo of himself and posts it on here how is that supposed to reflect negatively on State Farm?  I assume that you are refering to most likely a photo of Bob.  Any comments Bob?

Insprojohn,

When I took the R&H certification with State Farm, we used a very high tech method of protecting the rope and the ridge.  Just joking--actually we used plumbing pipe insulation (the kind that is pre-split and you can just pop it over the rope not feed it through) then used the world famous duct tape wrapped about a half a roll over the foam pipe insulation.  The insulation stayed soft but rigid enough to roll over the ridge and still light weight.   Checking the rope after each use you can just apply talc to any area of heavy asphalt but always wear gloves.