Garland County, AR Roof Snow Load - 10 psf
How much snow is too much for a roof in Garland County, AR?
10 psf: that's what ASCE 7-22 requires a typical heated home's roof in Garland County to carry. 7 psf is what the ground-load formula alone gives; Garland County's 10 psf low-slope minimum (§7.3.4) beats it, so that figure is the one that governs on flat and low-pitch roofs.
Picture it, not just weigh it: 22 in. if it's fresh powder, 8 in. once it settles, or a mere 2 in. if it's ice. A modest addition to standard roof loading. Ordinary residential construction handles this without extra bracing.
Snow on Garland County's roofs right now?
Garland County, AR: quick facts
- Design roof snow load10 psf
- Ground snow load, ASCE 7 map10 psf
- National rank#1,719 of 2,758
- Arkansas rank#13 of 75
- Population99,902
- Annual snowfall, NOAA normal1.4 in.
- FIPS05051
How Garland County compares
10 psf ranks #1,719 of 2,758 US counties with a mapped snow load (top 62%) - and #13 of 75 in Arkansas. 10.1 psf is Arkansas's typical county figure - Garland County comes in 0.1 psf under it.
Population 99,902 (FIPS 05051), roughly 34.5789°N 93.1469°W. The 10 psf ground snow load ASCE 7-22 maps here becomes 10 psf once the code's own design factors are applied.
Typical snowfall in Garland County, AR
NOAA's 30-year normal for Garland County: 1.4 in. of snow a year, from the BLAKELY MTN DAM, AR US station. (fresh vs. packed vs. ice explains why.)
What this Garland County figure assumes
This is a county-level reference figure for a typical heated home built to Risk Category II (ordinary residential), on a partially exposed lot - the assumptions ASCE 7-22 itself treats as the default case. A steeper roof, a fully exposed hilltop lot, an unheated structure, or a higher risk category all change the actual number.
Garland County's permit office wants an address-specific figure, not this county average - the ASCE 7 Hazard Tool is free, takes under a minute, and outputs a PDF most reviewers accept. See the methodology guide.