Saluda County, SC Roof Snow Load - 10 psf
How much snow is too much for a roof in Saluda County, SC?
10 psf: that's what ASCE 7-22 requires a typical heated home's roof in Saluda County to carry. §7.3.4's low-slope minimum of 10 psf is what actually governs on a flat or low-pitch roof here - higher than the 7 psf the base ground-load formula gives.
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.
Saluda County at a glance
- Design roof snow load10 psf
- Ground snow load, ASCE 7 map10 psf
- National rank#1,914 of 2,758
- South Carolina rank#32 of 46
- Population19,452
- Annual snowfall, NOAA normal0.4 in.
- FIPS45081
How Saluda County compares
10 psf ranks #1,914 of 2,758 US counties with a mapped snow load (top 69%) - and #32 of 46 in South Carolina. That's 1.2 psf above South Carolina's own county-average design load of 8.8 psf.
Population 19,452 (FIPS 45081), roughly 34.0053°N 81.7279°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 Saluda County, SC
NOAA's 30-year normal for Saluda County: 0.4 in. of snow a year, from the SALUDA, SC US station. (fresh vs. packed vs. ice explains why.)
What this Saluda 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.
Saluda 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.