Mercer County, KY Roof Snow Load - 15 psf
How much snow is too much for a roof in Mercer County, KY?
15 psf: that's what ASCE 7-22 requires a typical heated home's roof in Mercer County to carry. 10.5 psf is what the ground-load formula alone gives; Mercer County's 15 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: 33 in. if it's fresh powder, 12 in. once it settles, or a mere 3 in. if it's 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.
Mercer County at a glance
- Design roof snow load15 psf
- Ground snow load, ASCE 7 map15 psf
- National rank#1,446 of 2,758
- Kentucky rank#57 of 120
- Population23,515
- Annual snowfall, NOAA normal14.5 in.
- FIPS21167
How Mercer County compares
15 psf ranks #1,446 of 2,758 US counties with a mapped snow load (top 52%) - and #57 of 120 in Kentucky. 15.7 psf is Kentucky's typical county figure - Mercer County comes in 0.7 psf under it.
Population 23,515 (FIPS 21167), roughly 37.8121°N 84.8797°W. The 15 psf ground snow load ASCE 7-22 maps here becomes 15 psf once the code's own design factors are applied.
Typical snowfall in Mercer County, KY
NOAA's 30-year normal for Mercer County: 14.5 in. of snow a year, from the LEXINGTON BLUEGRASS AP, KY US station. (fresh vs. packed vs. ice explains why.)
What this Mercer 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.
Mercer 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. (How this figure is calculated.)