Douglas County, NE Roof Snow Load - 20 psf
What ASCE 7 says about snow load in Douglas County
That's Douglas County's design roof snow load per ASCE 7-22, for a typical heated single-family home - the number a permit reviewer starts from. 17.5 psf is what the ground-load formula alone gives; Douglas County's 20 psf low-slope minimum (§7.3.4) beats it, so that figure is the one that governs on flat and low-pitch roofs.
Converted to something you can actually eyeball on a roof: about 44 in. of fresh powder, 16 in. once it settles and packs down, or just 4 in. if it's turned to ice. This is a meaningful design load - most modern-code homes handle it fine, though an addition, a carport or a flat-roofed section can be a weak spot.
Douglas County, NE: quick facts
- Design roof snow load20 psf
- Ground snow load, ASCE 7 map25 psf
- National rank#531 of 2,758
- Nebraska rank#14 of 93
- Population601,158
- Annual snowfall, NOAA normal34.4 in.
- FIPS31055
Where Douglas County's figure sits nationally
Out of 2,758 rated US counties, Douglas County sits at #531, the top 19% nationally - #14 of 93 within Nebraska. 20.2 psf is Nebraska's typical county figure - Douglas County comes in 0.2 psf under it.
Near 41.2971°N 96.1541°W, FIPS 31055: Douglas County counts 601,158 residents and a 25 psf map value, which the code's own factors turn into 20 psf.
How much it actually snows in Douglas County
Most winters bring Douglas County roughly 34.4 in. of snow - NOAA's normal at BENNINGTON 3WSW, NE US, 4.8 mi off. (fresh vs. packed vs. ice explains why.)
Read this before you rely on it
Douglas County's number above is ASCE 7-22's default case, not a custom calculation: ordinary residential occupancy, heated, sited on ground that's neither fully sheltered nor fully exposed. Any one of those changing - pitch, exposure, heating, occupancy - moves the real figure.
Nothing here substitutes for an address-level number. Get one free, in about a minute, from the ASCE 7 Hazard Tool using your own coordinates rather than Douglas County's county-wide figure. (How this figure is calculated.)