SnowLoadCheck

Bergen County, NJ Roof Snow Load - 20 psf

Bergen County, NJ: your roof's ASCE 7 snow number, in plain English

Moderate
20 psf

Bergen County's roofs are built to hold 20 psf of snow, the ASCE 7-22 figure a permit reviewer checks first. ASCE 7's low-slope-roof minimum (§7.3.4) raises the governing figure to 20 psf - higher than the 17.5 psf the ground-load formula alone would give, and the code says use the larger one.

In depth, not weight: that's roughly 44 inches of fresh, light snow, 16 inches of old, settled snow, or as little as 4 inches of solid ice - snow that heavy is rare here but ice from a freeze-thaw cycle adds up far faster than the depth suggests. Modern-code homes carry a load like this without issue; an older addition, a carport, or any flat-roofed section is where it is worth checking first.

Bergen County in numbers

Bergen County by the numbers

Nationally that's #512 out of 2,758 rated counties, the top 19%; within New Jersey alone, Bergen County ranks #3 of 17. 20.1 psf is New Jersey's typical county figure - Bergen County comes in 0.1 psf under it.

Bergen County, FIPS 34003, is home to 978,641 people near 40.9597°N 74.0747°W. Its 25 psf ground snow load figure is the map value; 20 psf is what a roof is actually designed for.

Bergen County's snowfall, most winters

29.8 in. a year: that's Bergen County's NOAA 1991-2020 snowfall normal, measured at NEW YORK LAGUARDIA AP, NY US (16.1 mi away). See the density guide.

Before you rely on Bergen County's number

Treat the Bergen County figure as a starting point, not a final answer: it assumes standard occupancy, a heated structure and a moderately sheltered site, per ASCE 7-22's own defaults. Exposed terrain, an unheated building or a steeper roof all shift the real number.

For a real application, skip the county number and go straight to the ASCE 7 Hazard Tool - enter your coordinates and it returns a site-specific figure a plan reviewer will recognize. (How this figure is calculated.)