Madison County, AR Roof Snow Load - 10 psf
How much snow is too much for a roof in Madison County, AR?
10 psf: that's what ASCE 7-22 requires a typical heated home's roof in Madison County to carry. Flat and low-pitch roofs in Madison County are actually governed by ASCE 7's §7.3.4 minimum of 10 psf, not the 7 psf the ground-load formula alone would produce.
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. This is a modest add-on to standard roof loading - ordinary residential construction carries it without extra bracing.
Madison County, AR: quick facts
- Design roof snow load10 psf
- Ground snow load, ASCE 7 map10 psf
- National rank#1,926 of 2,758
- Arkansas rank#39 of 75
- Population17,865
- Annual snowfall, NOAA normal5.6 in.
- FIPS05087
How Madison County compares
10 psf ranks #1,926 of 2,758 US counties with a mapped snow load (top 70%) - and #39 of 75 in Arkansas. Arkansas counties average 10.1 psf; Madison County runs 0.1 psf lower than that.
Population 17,865 (FIPS 05087), roughly 36.0125°N 93.7241°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 Madison County, AR
NOAA's 30-year normal for Madison County: 5.6 in. of snow a year, from the ST PAUL 1 E, AR US station. (fresh vs. packed vs. ice explains why.)
What this Madison 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.
Madison 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. Details: the calculation guide.