Walker County, TX Roof Snow Load - 5 psf
How much snow is too much for a roof in Walker County, TX?
5 psf: that's what ASCE 7-22 requires a typical heated home's roof in Walker County to carry. 3.5 psf is what the ground-load formula alone gives; Walker County's 5 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: 11 in. if it's fresh powder, 4 in. once it settles, or a mere 1 in. if it's ice. Standard residential construction handles a load this size without extra bracing; it is a modest addition on top of ordinary roof loading.
Walker County at a glance
- Design roof snow load5 psf
- Ground snow load, ASCE 7 map5 psf
- National rank#2,152 of 2,758
- Texas rank#74 of 254
- Population83,722
- Annual snowfall, NOAA normal0 in.
- FIPS48471
How Walker County compares
5 psf ranks #2,152 of 2,758 US counties with a mapped snow load (top 78%) - and #74 of 254 in Texas. That's 0.4 psf below Texas's own county-average design load of 5.4 psf.
Population 83,722 (FIPS 48471), roughly 30.7432°N 95.5698°W. The 5 psf ground snow load ASCE 7-22 maps here becomes 5 psf once the code's own design factors are applied.
Typical snowfall in Walker County, TX
NOAA's 30-year normal for Walker County: 0 in. of snow a year, from the RICHARDS, TX US station. (fresh vs. packed vs. ice explains why.)
What this Walker 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.
Walker 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.