Roof Design and Cost

I want to build a adobe style house (flat roof) in southern Idaho.

This area has an average of 6-7 inches of snowfall per year. What would be any cost differences between the added structural support for a flat roof to that of a standard pitched roof?

Roy


Roy,

The snow load in your area is determined by your local building code.

If you are only dealing with 6-7 inches of snow, this may be as low as 10 or 15 pounds per square foot which will not have a major impact on your structural design.
However, there are parts of Idaho which receive 6-7 feet of snow in which case a flat roof may be impractical.

So, check the loads with your local building inspector and good luck with your project.

David Moore, AIA
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Carl