Frost Depth & Snow Load in Greeley, CO

If you live in Greeley or are thinking about moving there, frost depth & snow load are one of those things you probably won't think about until they affect you directly. Greeley has 3 specific rules on the books covering different aspects of frost depth & snow load, and some of them might surprise you.

Frost Line Depth

Greeley sets its frost line depth at 30 inches in the design criteria table added to its municipal code: six inches shallower than Denver and Aurora.

Key details: Frost line depth: 30 inches. How it compares: Six inches shallower than Denver and Aurora, both 36 inches. Code edition enforced: 2021 International Building Code and 2021 International Residential Code. Weathering: Severe. Seismic design category: B.

Footing depth is verified at the foundation inspection before concrete is placed, and a footing bearing above 30 inches will not pass. Note the code's own footnote warning that the frost line depth may require deeper footings than the model figure indicates: the tabulated 30 inches is the jurisdiction's minimum, not a guarantee that conditions on a particular site will not demand more.

Ground Snow Load

Greeley fixes its ground snow load at 30 pounds per square foot by ordinance, citing the Structural Engineers Association of Colorado's 2016 design snow loads report as the basis.

Key details: Ground snow load (pg): 30 psf. Stated basis: Colorado Design Snow Loads Report, Structural Engineers Association of Colorado, April 2016. Roof snow load: Derived under IBC Section 1608, subject to a 20 psf minimum. How it compares: Below Denver (43 psf) and Aurora (40 psf). Citation: Greeley Municipal Code Sec. 22-49, amending Section 1608.2.

Ground snow load is a design input enforced at plan review. Drawings must show the structure designed for the 30 psf ground load, with the roof value derived from it under Section 1608 of the IBC including drift and loading considerations: subject to the separate floor the ordinance sets on the final roof load.

Greeley is more permissive than most cities when it comes to ground snow load. That said, there are still limits.

Roof Snow Load

Greeley does not publish a fixed roof snow load: it requires the value to be calculated under the IBC, but sets a hard floor of 20 psf that no design may fall below.

Key details: Minimum design roof snow load: 20 psf, uniformly distributed. How the value is derived: IBC Section 1608, with ASCE 7 Chapter 7 loading and drifting. Ground snow load it derives from: 30 psf. Nature of the rule: A floor, not a fixed value: calculation applies above it. Citation: Greeley Municipal Code Sec. 22-49, amending Section 1608.2.

Enforced at plan review. A roof design whose calculated load falls below 20 psf must be brought up to that floor regardless of what the factors produce. Drifting must be accounted for separately under Chapter 7 of ASCE 7; the 20 psf minimum is a uniformly distributed floor and does not substitute for a drift analysis.

Greeley is more permissive than most cities when it comes to roof snow load. That said, there are still limits.

The Bottom Line

Compared to many U.S. cities, Greeley gives residents more room on frost depth & snow load. 2 of the 3 rules here are rated permissive. But permissive does not mean unregulated. There are still requirements, and the city does enforce them when violations are reported.

These rules come from Greeley's publicly available municipal code. For complete penalty schedules, exemption details, and answers to common questions, see the individual ordinance pages throughout this guide.