Canadian snow load help please 2

[SLTA]

Can anyone please inform me of the ground snow load requirement for Prince Edward Island in Canada? I've called the building department there as well as the NRC Institute for Research in Construction, and neither of them know the answer. Unfortunately I have no access to the National Building Code of Canada.

I found a vague reference to approximately 61 psf, but I'd like some "official" confirmation before we order roof trusses.

 

[BENDOG]

I have a 1995 copy of the Canadian Code. The ground snow load varies from 2.4 kPa to 2.9 kPa, depending on the city.

 

[SLTA]

Thank you, thank you!

 

[LOKSTR]

slta,



For "Charlottetown" PEI, NBCC-2005 1/50 year load are:
Ss=2.7 kpa
Sr=0.6 kpa

Wind (1/50)=0.60 kpa
(1/10)=0.46 kPa

Hope this helps.

LOKSTR

 

[youngstructural]

How do you come to be working in PEI and not have access to the code? It's an offence to practice in a Canadian jurisdiction without being a licensed engineer there...

You might want to involve a local, licensed, professional engineer.

Further, if you're just looking for the snow load for a product manufacturing reason, the local building department should be able to tell you.

Drifting, balanced and unbalanced, as well as sliding snow are all explicitly required by the NBCC. I strongly urge you to seek a P.Eng. (PEI) Structural Engineer to assist you.

Regards,

YS

B.Eng (Carleton)
Working in New Zealand, thinking of my snow covered home...

 

[SLTA]

YS, thanks for the reminder. I did indeed call the local building department, as well as the agency that wrote the code, and neither of them could answer my seemingly-simple question. This is for residential construction, and if an engineering seal is required, we recommend the homeowners hire a local engineer to assist. (We have stamps for all 50 states, but not outside the US.)

LOKSTR, thanks for the additional information!

 

[youngstructural]

No problem; The building department and code agency were both probably too surprised at receiving the call... They would automatically presume that any engineer contacting them would have the code.

Under Canadian law it is the Engineer who commits an offence when offering services to the public without a license (and in some provinces this must also be through a registered company in prosession of a valid "Certificate of Authorisation".

I can understand your position, and know that you are not trying to break any laws, however I must warn you that from what I have seen, you are. You may stand to be banned from practice in PEI (and potentially other Provinces, as you would be required to check the box "Yes" for "Have you ever been disciplined by, or been subject to sanction from, any jurisdiction" [I'm paraphrasing, but you get the idea, and it's pretty much a no-go for getting a license from what I understand].

You should be very careful. I would encourage you to contact the PEI Professinal Engineering Assosciation.

http://www.engineerspei.com/

They may be a small province (sort of a Canadian Rhode Island) but they'll have very similar, more than a little midly protectionist, engineering laws.

Regards,

YS

B.Eng (Carleton)
Working in New Zealand, thinking of my snow covered home...

 

[connect2]

youngstructural:
Your snow covered home is presently not snow covered. Infact in Ottawa, the home of your alma mater, it's 31 deg. C today.
Chill out, go figure.

 

[jrh009]

Moderately surprised that the local building dept could not answer your question. When you call a building dept. in a Canadian Prov make sure you are talking to a C.B.O., ( chief building official).

Perhaps you got the floor sweeper. I agree they should have been able to respond to your perfectly reasonable request. It is surprising sometimes in small jurisdictions what level of Municipal competence exists!

Residential portions of the Canadian Code can be designed by anyone as long as the design stays with in that part of the code!

 

[youngstructural]

I think you will all find that when an engineer provides service to the public (ie: to anyone, corporate or individual) you are offering engineering services to the publuc. Last time I read by Marston "Law for Professional Engineers" that was pretty clear to me...

Whether or not you need to be an engineer to apply something, if you ARE an engineer there is an implicit understanding that the person has engaged you because of your training... Something tells me that slta isn't just going to go through all of the tables in Part 9 and ensure they comply with the whole of the residential code; He/She will be applying specialist knowledge based on the loading... That IS Professional Engineering, even if there is a code which covers the work.

Just my opinion, and when last I checked following the rules is pretty much the halmark of due diligence.

Cheers,

YS

B.Eng (Carleton)
Working in New Zealand, thinking of my snow covered home...

 

[MiketheEngineer]

The truss mfg should be able to answer that...