Washburn County, WI Roof Snow Load - 42 psf
How much snow is too much for a roof in Washburn County, WI?
42 psf: that's what ASCE 7-22 requires a typical heated home's roof in Washburn County to carry.
Picture it, not just weigh it: 92.4 in. if it's fresh powder, 33.6 in. once it settles, or a mere 8.4 in. if it's ice. A serious structural load. Homes built before modern snow-load provisions, or with low-slope/flat roof sections, are the ones most worth having checked.
Got real snow on a Washburn County roof right now?
Washburn County in numbers
- Design roof snow load42 psf
- Ground snow load, ASCE 7 map60 psf
- National rank#59 of 2,758
- Wisconsin rank#10 of 72
- Population16,982
- Annual snowfall, NOAA normal55.7 in.
- FIPS55129
How Washburn County compares
42 psf ranks #59 of 2,758 US counties with a mapped snow load (top 2%) - and #10 of 72 in Wisconsin. Wisconsin counties average 30.9 psf; Washburn County runs 11.1 psf higher than that.
Population 16,982 (FIPS 55129), roughly 45.8925°N 91.7964°W. The 60 psf ground snow load ASCE 7-22 maps here becomes 42 psf once the code's own design factors are applied.
Typical snowfall in Washburn County, WI
NOAA's 30-year normal for Washburn County: 55.7 in. of snow a year, from the SPOONER AG RES STN, WI US station. (fresh vs. packed vs. ice explains why.)
What this Washburn 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.
Washburn 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.