White County, TN Roof Snow Load - 10 psf
White County, TN: your roof's ASCE 7 snow number, in plain English
White County's roofs are built to hold 10 psf of snow, the ASCE 7-22 figure a permit reviewer checks first. ASCE 7's low-slope-roof minimum (§7.3.4) raises the governing figure to 10 psf - higher than the 7 psf the ground-load formula alone would give, and the code says use the larger one.
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. A modest addition to standard roof loading. Ordinary residential construction handles this without extra bracing.
Snow on White County's roofs right now?
White County in numbers
- Design roof snow load10 psf
- Ground snow load, ASCE 7 map10 psf
- National rank#1,847 of 2,758
- Tennessee rank#54 of 95
- Population29,108
- Annual snowfall, NOAA normal5 in.
- FIPS47185
White County by the numbers
Nationally that's #1,847 out of 2,758 rated counties, the top 67%; within Tennessee alone, White County ranks #54 of 95. 10.3 psf is Tennessee's typical county figure - White County comes in 0.3 psf under it.
White County, FIPS 47185, is home to 29,108 people near 35.927°N 85.4558°W. Its 10 psf ground snow load figure is the map value; 10 psf is what a roof is actually designed for.
White County's snowfall, most winters
5 in. a year: that's White County's NOAA 1991-2020 snowfall normal, measured at SPARTA WASTEWATER PLANT, TN US (1.8 mi away). See the density guide.
Before you rely on White County's number
Treat the White 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. (How this figure is calculated.)