ASCE 7-10 Snow Load Provision Objectives

Introduce changes in the ASCE 7-10

SEAoO Conference Snow Load provisions
September 2011 Present reasoning behind changes
Michael O’Rourke PE , Ph.D. Answer Frequently Asked Questions
Rensselaer Answer audience questions (hopefully)

1 2

Outline Minimum Roof Snow Load

Minimum Roof Snow Load Clarification
Thermal Factor Scenario- roof
Unbalanced Load load right after
Drift Load on Adjacent Roof heavy snow w/o
wind
Parapet Wall & RTU Drift
No time for
Sliding Load on Adjacent Roof thermal, no wind
Ponding Roof load Pr= Pg
FAQ’s
3 4

Minimum Roof Snow Load Minimum Roof Snow Load

Pm = Is Pg Pg < 20 psf After the single heavy snow storm -
eventually the wind blows , thermal
Pm = 20 Is Pg > 20 psf effects have time to act, and we then
get Ps on the roof.
“ This minimum roof load is a separate
The 20 psf value is our estimate of the uniform load case. It need not be
maximum size of a ‘single’ heavy used in determining or in combination
snow storm with drift, sliding, unbalanced or
partial loads”
5 6
Outline Thermal Factor
Minimum Roof Snow Load Usually the roof snow load w/o drifting
Thermal Factor is less than the ground snow load ,
Unbalanced Load but with special circumstances pr>pg
Drift Load on Adjacent Roof
Parapet Wall & RTU Drift
Sliding Load on Adjacent Roof
Ponding
FAQ’s
7 8

Thermal Factor Thermal Factor

In the SEAW report, biggest differences In ASCE 7-10 we now have a new Ct
were for Freezer buildings – going factor
from hot to cold Unheated and open air Ct = 1.2
Structures intentionally kept below
Roof Heated Bldg- hot air below freezing Ct = 1.3
Ground- warm earth below As a result , for freezer w/ Is=1.0 and
Roof Open Air Bldg- ambient air below Ce = 1.2 , flat roof load > pg
Roof Freezer Bldg- cold air below
9 10

Outline Unbalanced Loads-Gable Roof

Minimum Roof Snow Load Upper Limit Roof Slope - change
Thermal Factor Lower Limit Roof Slope - simplify
Unbalanced Load Small Eave to Ridge Distance -change
Drift Load on Adjacent Roof
Parapet Wall & RTU drift
Sliding Load on Adjacent Roof
Ponding
FAQ’s
11 12
Unbalanced- Upper Limit Slope Unbalanced-Upper Limit Slope
In 7-05 upper Observations by
limit slope based TTEA- unbalance
on Cs chart for 6 on 12 & less
Unbalance load Consistent with
for roof slope up max slope of roof
to 70º step drifts 1V:2H
Angle of repose Seems drifted
for drift same as snow has smaller
fresh fallen snow? angle of repose
13 14

Unbalanced-Upper Limit Slope Unbalanced Loads-Gable Roof

In ASCE 7-10 we were a bit conservative Upper Limit Roof Slope
Lower Limit Roof Slope
“For hip and gable roofs with slope Small Eave to Ridge Distance
exceeding 7 on 12 (30.2º)…unbalanced
snow loads are not required to be
applied”

15 16

Unbalanced-Lower Limit Slope Unbalanced-Lower Limit Slope

In 7-05 lower limit was complicated - Vertical line - ½ on 12 limit
slopes less than larger of 70/W +0.5 Horizontal line - roof too small to care?
and 1/2 on 12 Transition – curve fit ?
Based upon observed occurrence

17 18
Unbalanced-Lower Limit Slope
½ on 12 seems to
be a physical limit
Venturi tube has
angle < 4º avoids
separation
½ on 12 has angle
> 4º separation ,
wind shadow &
drift
19
Unbalanced Loads-Gable Roof
Upper Limit Roof Slope
Lower Limit Roof Slope
Small Eave to Ridge Distance
21
Unbalanced-Small Width
The question of whether the lu=25 ft
should apply to gable roof drifts is
complicated by the following issues
Theoretical issue- Fig 7-9 is empirical
relation based on case histories with
a mean value of lu=172 ft
Practical issue-relation gives negative
values for low Pg and small W=lu
hence some limit needed
23
Unbalanced-Lower Limit Slope
In ASCE 7-10 lower limit relation
simplified
“ For hip and gable roofs … with a slope
less than 2.38º (1/2 on 12)
unbalanced snow loads are not
required to be applied”
20
Unbalanced-Small Width
Fig 7-9 originally
for roof steps
lu restriction not a
issue for steps
Fig 7-9 now also
used for gables
lu=25 ft seemed
arbitrary
22
Unbalanced-Small Width
For bldg’s with small W , JC/MOR method
was used to simulate max annual drifts
for a # of locations & winters
Big differences between upper Midwest &
Pacific NW
However results suggest that …“For W
less than 20 ft, use 20 ft in Fig 7-9”
24
Outline Drift Load on Adjacent Roof
Minimum Roof Snow Load In ASCE 7-05 a
Thermal Factor truncated drift
Unbalanced Load required if lower
adjacent roof
Drift Load on Adjacent Roof within 20 ft. of
Parapet Wall & RTU Drift higher level roof
Sliding Load on Adjacent Roof In ASCE 7-05
Ponding roofs A,B & C all
FAQ’s get drifts
25 26

Drfit Load on Adjacent Roof Drift Load on Adjacent Roof

In reality drift Leeward drift if
only if lower roof s < 20’ & s < 6h
in wind shadow of (in wind shadow)
upper roof Drift height
In ASCE 7-10 we smaller of hd and
assume a 1(V) to (6h-s)/6
6(H) wind shadow Drift length
after Tabler’s work smaller of 6hd
on snow fences and (6h-s)
27 28

Drift Load on Adjacent Roof Outline

Windward drift if Minimum Roof Snow Load
s < 20’ Thermal Factor
Truncated drift Unbalanced Load
hd windward Drift Load on Adjacent Roof
drift height Parapet Wall & RTU Drift
based on fetch
for lower roof Sliding Load on Adjacent Roof
Ponding
FAQ’s
29 30
Parapet Wall & RTU Drift Parapet Wall & RTU Drift
In ASCE 7-05 In reality for North wind –Drift North of
upwind fetch for RTU is windward drift w/ fetch = LN
parapet wall Drift South of RTU is leeward drift w/
clear effective fetch < LN
In ASCE 7-05
upwind fetch for
RTU unclear

31 32

Parapet Wall & RTU Drift Outline

ASCE 7-10 clarifies and simplifies the Minimum Roof Snow Load
RTU case by specifying windward drift Thermal Factor
for both sides Unbalanced Load
“ For roof projections ,lu shall be taken Drift Load on Adjacent Roof
equal to the greater of the length of
the roof upwind or downwind of the Parapet Wall & RTU Drift
projection” Sliding Load on Adjacent Roof
Ponding
FAQ’s
33 34

Sliding Load on Adjacent Roof Sliding Load on Adjacent Roof

Sliding load on New provision
lower roof in 7-05 Sliding load on
Surcharge taken adjacent if s<15’
as 0.4pfW and h>s (45º
Applies to slopes sliding shadow)
greater than ¼ Load pro-rated
on 12(slippery) or 0.4pfW(15-s)/15
2 on 12(non-slip)

35 36
Outline Ponding
Minimum Roof Snow Load In ASCE 7-05 a
Thermal Factor ponding analysis
Unbalanced Load was required
only for roof
Drift Load on Adjacent Roof slopes less than
Parapet Wall & RTU Drift ¼ on 12
Sliding Load on Adjacent Roof Envisions a free
Ponding draining eave
FAQ’s
37 38

Ponding Outline
New provision in Minimum Roof Snow Load
7-10 account for Thermal Factor
impounded water Unbalanced Load
in susceptible
bays w/ any Drift Load on Adjacent Roof
slope Parapet Wall & RTU Drift
Problems arise Sliding Load on Adjacent Roof
w/o SE/ME/Arch Ponding
interaction FAQ’s
39 40

FAQ #1 Elevated RTU FAQ # 2 Combined Loads

For a new heavy RTU on a large , For the step sketched below should sliding
existing roof , how can I avoid snow and drifting loads be combined?
drift loads adjacent to the unit?

For normal sized RTU’s( not billboards)

specify a 2 foot gap between the
bottom of the dunnage/framework and
the top of the balanced snow

41 42
FAQ # 2 Combined Loads
No – in ASCE 7 both the drift load and the
sliding load are intended to be 50 year MRI
events . While it is possible to have some
drift and some sliding simultaneously on a
roof , that load combination is not
envisioned in ASCE 7. The return period for
the simultaneous occurrence of the 50 year
drift and the 50 year sliding load would be
much larger than the 50 year MRI
envisioned by the ASCE 7 Provisions.
43
FAQ # 2 Combined Loads
If the two events were completely
independent , the return period would be
2500 years. Actually r² neither 1 nor 0.
For a leeward drift (wind from left to right )
, the sliding snow and the drifted snow
come from the same source area- the
upper level roof.
For a step , ASCE 7 is clear in that the
larger of the windward and leeward applies
– provisions based on observation.
44

FAQ # 3 Awing Drift FAQ # 3 Awing Drift

A design load for a small awing over a
doorway in the end wall of a tall gable
seems excessive . Should it be
designed as a roof step ?

45 46

FAQ # 3 Awing Drift FAQ # 3 Awing Drift

Yes – failures have If ‘h’ is large , one
been observed for expects smaller
cases where “ h” drifts due to lower
is moderate ( ~5 trapping efficiency
to 15 ft.) . If the horizontal
extent of the awing
is small – drift
limited by angle of
repose of drifted
snow.1:4 shown
typical – but not
conservative
47 48
FAQ # 4 Odd Drift Geometries FAQ # 4 Odd Drift Geometries
ASCE 7 specifies drifts for simple Approach used for
geometries based on the size of the gable roof drifts in
upwind snow source area ( fetch and 7-05
ground snow ) Area for roof step
For more complex geometries, a drift is A = 2(hd)²
reasonable approach is to match the For a triangular
cross-sectional area of the odd gable drift with a
shaped drift to that for a roof step 1:S slope , areas
with the same fetch and ground load match

49 50

FAQ # 4 Odd Drift Geometries FAQ # 4 Odd Drift Geometries

Roof step with a Step with non-
sloping lower level vertical separation
roof wall
hd is drift height for hd is height for
windward or leeward windward or leeward
roof step with same drift at step with same
fetch and ground load fetch and ground load
Applies for slopes less Applies for slopes
than 3:12 for typical steeper than 3:12 for
angle of repose typical angle of repose

51 52

FAQ # 5 Drift at Addition FAQ#5 Addition-Snow Bay

For an addition adjacent to an Leeward &
existing lower lever roof , how do I windward drift on
new roof !
avoid the roof step drift ?
Lower head room
for portion of
There are three approaches ; snow bay, addition "
new walls to trap and/or shield snow, From a structural
and exotic measures. Some work well engineering
standpoint – this
, others not so.
works
53 54
FAQ # 5 Addition- New Walls FAQ # 5 Addition- Trapping
Fixes include new wall @ roof step Wall or step traps a
(trap) or far upwind wall (shield) portion of upwind
snow , even w/
Trapping- some snow upwind of the excess drift space
wall is trapped by the wall available
Shielding- all of the snow for a Trapping efficiency
distance downwind of the wall, typically about
shielded by the wall 50% at leeward
step, less at
windward

55 56

FAQ # 5 Addition-Shielding FAQ # 5 Wall Implementation

Wall will shield all One proposed fix
snow within a involved a number
certain distance of shielding walls
downwind of wall
Still have windward
10 ho rule is
drift
conservative for Ce
factor Due to cost , owner
Measurements decided to
suggests 5 ho is reinforce existing
conservative for roofs
shielding
57 58

FAQ # 5 Exotic Measures FAQ # 5 Exotic Measures

Reduce space for drift accumulation with Set of baffles which redirect wind and
light geofoam blocks or a false roof minimize leeward drift. May have difficulty
convincing the local code official since
approach isn’t codified. Still have windward

59 60
ASCE 7-10 Snow Load Provision
Additional questions either

Contact M. O’R at orourm@rpi.edu

Buy “ Snow Loads – A Guide to the

Snow Load Provisions of ASCE 7–10 ”
ASCE Press

61