SnowLoadCheck

Shelby County, TN Roof Snow Load - 10 psf

Shelby County, TN: your roof's ASCE 7 snow number, in plain English

Light
10 psf

Shelby County's roofs are built to hold 10 psf of snow, the ASCE 7-22 figure a permit reviewer checks first. §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.

In depth, not weight: that's roughly 22 inches of fresh, light snow, 8 inches of old, settled snow, or as little as 2 inches of solid ice - snow that heavy is rare here but ice from a freeze-thaw cycle adds up far faster than the depth suggests. Standard residential construction handles a load this size without extra bracing; it is a modest addition on top of ordinary roof loading.

Shelby County in numbers

Shelby County by the numbers

Nationally that's #1,648 out of 2,758 rated counties, the top 60%; within Tennessee alone, Shelby County ranks #6 of 95. That's 0.3 psf below Tennessee's own county-average design load of 10.3 psf.

Shelby County, FIPS 47157, is home to 910,530 people near 35.1846°N 89.8946°W. Its 10 psf ground snow load figure is the map value; 10 psf is what a roof is actually designed for.

Shelby County's snowfall, most winters

2.1 in. a year: that's Shelby County's NOAA 1991-2020 snowfall normal, measured at GERMANTOWN 4SE, TN US (11.4 mi away). See the density guide.

Before you rely on Shelby County's number

Treat the Shelby County figure as a starting point, not a final answer: it assumes standard occupancy, a heated structure and a moderately sheltered site, per ASCE 7-22's own defaults. Exposed terrain, an unheated building or a steeper roof all shift the real number.

For a real application, skip the county number and go straight to the ASCE 7 Hazard Tool - enter your coordinates and it returns a site-specific figure a plan reviewer will recognize. Details: the calculation guide.