Your drone is stuck on a roof that’s either too steep, or inaccessible, now how do you get it off? I’m going to assume that you don’t have access to a ladder because that’s the first thing you would have thought of.
I did some research and I found these 10 best hacks that WILL get your drone off the roof.
Now that you have a brief overview of things to try, let’s dive into the details.
But before trying some of these methods, you’ll first want to try and locate your drone. This will make getting it off the roof a lot easier, and who knows, maybe it’s not even on the roof. Here’s are some ways you can do this.
Found it? Great, just knowing where it makes a huge difference.
NOTE: If you can’t locate the drone, or you feel like attempting a drone rescue could put yourself or others in harm’s way, jump to the end of the article to tip 10. Please don’t risk your own safety!
Now that you found your drone, let’s jump right in and get your drone off the roof before it starts raining!
Fishing for your drone could work well, just don’t attach a heavy sinker to the end of your line. The sheer weight and density of the sinker could damage your drone.
What you’ll need:
To have enough weight on your line to cast far enough, you’re going to want to use a 20/20 Treble Hook made of solid wire. The treble hook will also increase your chances of hooking the drone since it has three hooks pointing in all directions.
How to do it:
Roof rakes are handy when it comes to rescuing drones because they are designed to be long enough to reach across the entire roof. If you have one sitting in your garage, bonus! If not, consider grabbing one from Amazon.com or if you need it immediately, a Lowes store should have them on the shelves in the pool section.
If your friend has a drone, you could try this. It’s extremely easy to setup.
When trying a drone rescue though just keep in mind that you might be putting the other drone at risk. If you’re trying to rescue a cheap drone, it might not be worth it. So call your losses and go home. If it’s an expensive drone then go for it, but just make sure you keep these drone laws in mind when performing the rescue:
What you’ll need: In the video above the drone pilot used nothing more than a few old metal coat hangers as hooks, fishing line or any rope, and a bit of tape so that you can see the hooks properly flight.
How to do it:
I came across this neat little trick when I came across a forum of someone trying to get a toy off the roof. This method is extremely simple. However, it will only work if you’re able to throw a rope over the roof to the other side of the house.
What you’ll need:
For this, you’ll need a long rope attached to something heavy enough to throw over the house. This could be a shoe, a bar of soap or whatever. It doesn’t really matter, you’re just trying to get one side of the rope to the other side of the roof.
How to do it:
Please just be careful that you don’t end up ripping off a vent or something else that shouldn’t be removed on the roof. This might make this situation even more expensive.
This works especially well if your roof is sloped downwards towards the edge. Because of the shape of the football, you can throw the football over the drone, and as the football rolls down the roof, the rope pulls the drone down with it.
Just keep in mind that this method won’t work on a flat roof.
What you’ll need:
How to do it:
This method is different from the above because it’s designed to dislodge a drone if it’s stuck somewhere on a rood. Instead of pulling the drone off the roof, you just want to dislodge it by throwing something at it so that it can slide down itself.
When you need to throw something at your drone you don’t want to use something metal or something that can damage the drone’s battery. This can cause the LiPo battery to explode.
Kong biscuit balls work great because it’s heavy enough to throw and move the drone, but at the same time, it’s soft enough so that it won’t do any damage.
What you’ll need:
How to do it:
This method works perfectly on a flat roof. In this scenario, you need something heavy that will wrap itself around the drone, and when you pull it, you’ll need it to pull the drone with it. What better way to do this than a bag of beans?
What you’ll need:
How to do it:
This tends to be overlooked a lot. Roof servicing companies have all the right safety gear to access a roof safely. Give them a call and see if they’re will help. Now they probably won’t come out to your home for free, but if your drone is expensive it then it’ll be worth paying them a few hundred dollars to get it down.
Shop around and see which roof service is willing to do it for the cheapest.
INSIDER TIP: A lot of roofing services offer free roof inspections. So if you are looking to get your roof inspected anyway, then this is the perfect time to get this setup. And while they’re up there, ask them to grab your drone. Just don’t deceive them into coming out only to get your drone down.
Pool polls work great if you have sight of your drone but it just seems too far out of reach. Home Depot has some great options. They’ll probably set you back around $60, but if you don’t have a pool and you’re not planning on keeping them you’ll be able to return them.
Technically your drones LiPo battery is a fire hazard, so it’s not something that you would want to leave on a roof. If all other methods have failed, or if you feel like even attempting to get your drone might put yourself or others at risk, then try to call the fire department!
In this forum, an actual Lt. in the fire department had this to say.
“As a carrier fire Lt. in the US I can say I have been asked to get a drone out of a tree. I understand people’s reaction to it being a waste of resources. And in my department, it’s on a case by case basis. For example, the non-emergency fire alarm bucket truck retrieved a drone from a tree so as not to tie up an emergency ladder truck. One of the reasons for the Fire department doing it is. If people get creative/desperate to get the drone back they can easily hurt themselves or others. Also, I would never use water to get one out of a tree.”
Lt. in a fire department.
When you do call them though, follow these steps!
If your intentions are genuine, and you explain everything to them without lying, chances are that they will be more than happy to help you get it down.
The last thing that they want to is for you or someone else to put your lives at risk while trying to get the drone. Otherwise, it could turn into a genuine rescue, which no one wants.
It’s also worth mentioning that you should keep in mind how much your drone is worth. Some of the above methods might be worth it if your drone cost you a thousand dollars, but if it was less than $100, then you probably need to think if it’s even worth the time and the effort. If not, then it’s probably time to go drone shopping again!
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