SnowLoadCheck

Ocean County, NJ Roof Snow Load - 20 psf

What ASCE 7 says about snow load in Ocean County

Moderate
20 psf

That's Ocean County's design roof snow load per ASCE 7-22, for a typical heated single-family home - the number a permit reviewer starts from. The physics-based figure alone would be 14 psf, but ASCE 7's own low-slope minimum (§7.3.4) sets a floor of 20 psf for flat and low-pitch roofs here, which is the number that actually governs.

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.

Ocean County, NJ: quick facts

Where Ocean County's figure sits nationally

Out of 2,758 rated US counties, Ocean County sits at #527, the top 19% nationally - #7 of 17 within New Jersey. New Jersey counties average 20.1 psf; Ocean County runs 0.1 psf lower than that.

Near 39.8657°N 74.2589°W, FIPS 34029: Ocean County counts 666,434 residents and a 20 psf map value, which the code's own factors turn into 20 psf.

How much it actually snows in Ocean County

Most winters bring Ocean County roughly 10.2 in. of snow - NOAA's normal at BRANT BEACH-BEACH HAVEN, NJ US, 20.7 mi off. (fresh vs. packed vs. ice explains why.)

Read this before you rely on it

Ocean 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 Ocean County's county-wide figure. (How this figure is calculated.)