Flat Roof Snow Load Formula

For ground snow loads greater than 20 pounds per square foot the roof load is equal to 70 of the product of the exposure thermal and importance factors the ground snow load and 20 pounds.

Flat roof snow load formula.

Determine the transient load of the roof. For example 18 inches would be 1 5 feet. If you have any concerns as you are determining your flat roof snow load consult with a structural engineer or roofing specialist. Asce 7 05 equation 7 1 assumes that the snow load results from multiple events.

The sloped roof snow load p s shall be obtained by multiplying the flat roof snow load p f by the roof slope factor c s. You need to use a snow load formula for flat roofs. As a result equation 7 1 which accounts for loss between events will result in a non conservative value. The snow load that is applied to our structure is not the ground snow load but in most cases the flat roof snow load.

Express the result in feet rather than inches. This is all of the natural stresses imposed upon a roof such as snow loads rain loads and wind loads. From our example our ground load and flat roof snow load were found to be 30 psf and 21 psf respectively. Lets assume our project is in madison wisconsin and we have already calculated our balanced roof snow load here.

In our case let s assume that our structure has a flat roof roof slope 5. Dead load psf span calculator for wood joists and rafters available for the iphone. The flat roof snow load is calculated using formula 7 3 1. Provisions on how to calculate the snow drift surcharge for structures can be found in section 7 8 of asce 7 10.

If you live in the us our snow load calculator compares the total weight on your roof with the permissible load calculated according to the standards issued by the american society of civil engineers regarding the minimum design loads for buildings and other structures asce7 16. In regions with relatively low snow load values the load from a single event may result in the peak loading. Span calculator for wood joists and rafters also available for the android os. This is highly regional as weights of snow for example range from 10 to 300 pounds per square foot based on moisture and volume of the snow.

Other considerations for sloped roofs can be found throughout chapter 7 of asce 7 10. Online snow load calculator for buildings with flat or low slope roofs for balanced snow drift and rain on snow surcharge loadings calculator asce 7 05 for structural engineers construction professionals and building planners. The easiest way is to push a yardstick into the snow on the roof selecting an area that looks typical of the overall snow depth.