Early 1900's Snow Loadings 1

[olsont]

I'm currently evaluating an existing roof structure for a building in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. I'm wondering what the snow loading on the buildings roof should be? The building in question was built in 1914.

 

[HeavyCivil]

In Buffalo in 1904 40PSF was the minimum design live load for roofs (horizontal projection).

In 1907 in Minneapolis it was 30PSF.

That's the closest data I have.

 

[JRGse]

Check with the State. That was about the time WI adopted a State building code.

 

[BAretired]

Forty psf roof load seems like a good bet considering the heavy snowfall in December, 2010 and the current building code:

http://www.mii.com/artefact/download.asp?aid=43791

BA

 

[mtu1972]

Having worked on a number of central Wisconsin paper mill buildings that were built just after 1900 and back calculating from the framing data that was still in company files - far too many were designed for 20 psf "snow" loads, rather than anything resembling current codes or recent snow falls. Some were 30 psf, but those were not the norm.

The only saving grace was that they generally were poorly insulated and tended not to retain snow accumulations.

No experience in your part of the state.

gjc

 

[a2mfk]

An interesting point, though anecdotal, is that all of these older buildings are still here, no matter what the building code said or did not say. Look at the recent failures in the NE US this winter, a lot of these were modern PEMB roofs...

Like MTU said, poor insulation in a paper mill building, combined with the heat produced by most pulp processing...?

MTU, any of those jobs in the Fox Rivers area? I'm originally from near there, and my uncles is a retired steam fitter who worked on many, many mill projects. Just saw a History channel special on those mills, they now return the treated waste water to the river cleaner than when they withdraw it. My dad said it was just a running joke when he was younger about how nasty the rivers and lakes in that area used to be...

 

[mtu1972]

In my last few years there the company bought the Kimberly Mill and I did some work there.

Same thing with those older buidlings. The trussed roofs often had the Maxwell Stress Diagrams on the drawings, so member load determination was not that difficult. Often able to ascertain purlin loadings and get directly to SF design loads.

gjc

 

[mtu1972]

PS: Can't comment on the water treatment as I have no experience with such - but I know in Wisconsin Rapids the locals talked about the many environmental issues that were not given a 2nd thought in the old days.

gjc