Will Pipes Freeze in Alger County, MI? 84 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Alger County
In a normal year Alger County, MI gets 84 nights at or below 20°F, the point where bare pipes in a garage, attic or outside wall start to freeze. That is more than 84% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs November to April, worst in January.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 169 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 84 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 39 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 14 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 84 nights of risk to 39 nights. A 12 ft heat-tape kit runs $17 to $37; an average burst-pipe repair is about $500.
Month by month
Nights at or below 20°F in a normal year.
First 32°F night is usually around 10/14, last around 05/16. For 20°F: 11/17 to 04/10.
How cold Alger County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 14°F; the coldest month, February, averages 11°F overnight. 8 months normally bring at least one night below 32°F (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Oct, Nov, Dec). Nights below 10°F, cold enough to freeze insulated pipe in an unheated space, come in January, February, March, November, December: 39 nights a year, and 14 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12°F | 11°F | 19°F | 29°F | 39°F | 49°F | 55°F | 55°F | 49°F | 38°F | 28°F | 18°F |
Alger County next to its neighbours
Schoolcraft County, MI, 66 km southeast, gets 86 nights below 20°F to Alger County's 84 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alger County, MI | - | 169 nights | 84 nights | 12°F |
| Schoolcraft County, MI | 66 km southeast | 170 nights | 86 nights | 10°F |
| Marquette County, MI | 72 km west | 175 nights | 91 nights | 10°F |
| Delta County, MI | 82 km south | 185 nights | 95 nights | 7°F |
| Luce County, MI | 87 km east | 190 nights | 99 nights | 9°F |
| Dickinson County, MI | 109 km southwest | 186 nights | 103 nights | 5°F |
| Mackinac County, MI | 111 km east | 184 nights | 95 nights | 9°F |
Alger County within MI
Alger County ranks 23 of 83 MI counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Iron County, MI at 120 nights, with a 3°F average winter low. The fewest is Allegan County, MI: 38 nights, winter lows near 24°F. At 731 ft, Alger County sits 77 ft below the state's median county elevation of 808 ft.
What to do here
- Treat it as a building fix, not a night-of routine: insulate, heat tape, seal crawlspace vents.
- An automatic leak shutoff pays for itself if one burst is avoided.
- Know where the main shutoff is before the first hard freeze.
Interior pipes have a threshold too: the four freeze points.
Where this comes from
NOAA 1991-2020 climate normals, blended from 3 nearby stations and adjusted for elevation; closest is Munising, MI, 12 km away (close match). A normal year, not tonight's forecast: check the forecast low for the night itself. What a "fair" or "distant" station match means is in the method guide.