SnowLoadCheck

Woodson County, KS Roof Snow Load - 20 psf

Woodson County, KS roof snow load, translated

Moderate
20 psf

A typical heated home in Woodson County is designed to carry 20 pounds per square foot of snow on its roof, per ASCE 7-22. 14 psf is what the ground-load formula alone gives; Woodson County's 20 psf low-slope minimum (§7.3.4) beats it, so that figure is the one that governs on flat and low-pitch roofs.

On a roof that means 44 in. of fresh snow, 16 in. once it packs down, or 4 in. of solid ice - three very different piles for the same load. A meaningful design load. Most homes built to modern code handle it, but additions, carports, and flat-roofed sections are worth a second look.

Woodson County, KS: quick facts

Where Woodson County ranks

#53 of 105 Kansas counties by design load, top 45% of 2,758 nationally - that's Woodson County's spot. 18.2 psf is Kansas's typical county figure - Woodson County beats it by 1.8 psf.

FIPS 20207, population 3,111, centered near 37.8882°N 95.7585°W. ASCE 7's underlying ground snow load here is 20 psf before the code's exposure and importance factors bring it to the 20 psf design figure above.

Woodson County: average annual snowfall

Woodson County sees about 9 in. of snow most winters, per the YATES CTR, KS US station's 1991-2020 NOAA normal. See the density guide.

Read this before you use Woodson County's figure

The figure above assumes the case ASCE 7-22 treats as typical: a heated, ordinary-occupancy home on a partially exposed site. Change any of those - exposure, heating, roof pitch, occupancy category - and the real design number moves.

A building permit needs the number at your exact address, not the county average - the free ASCE 7 Hazard Tool returns that from your coordinates in about a minute and produces a PDF a plan reviewer will accept. Details: the calculation guide.