Will Pipes Freeze in Alpine County, CA? 58 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Alpine County
In a normal year Alpine County, CA gets 58 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 70% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs October to April, worst in December.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 189 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 58 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 11 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 2 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 58 nights of risk to 11 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 09/28, last around 06/07. For 20°F: 11/09 to 04/17.
How cold Alpine County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 22°F; the coldest month, December, averages 22°F overnight. 11 months normally bring at least one night below 32°F (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec). Nights below 10°F, cold enough to freeze insulated pipe in an unheated space, come in January, February, March, November, December: 11 nights a year, and 2 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22°F | 23°F | 26°F | 29°F | 35°F | 41°F | 48°F | 47°F | 42°F | 34°F | 27°F | 22°F |
Alpine County next to its neighbours
Douglas County, NV, 36 km northeast, gets 50 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alpine County, CA | - | 189 nights | 58 nights | 22°F |
| Douglas County, NV | 36 km northeast | 176 nights | 50 nights | 22°F |
| Carson City, NV | 59 km north | 149 nights | 45 nights | 24°F |
| El Dorado County, CA | 66 km west | 87 nights | 5 nights | 33°F |
| Tuolumne County, CA | 68 km south | 91 nights | 11 nights | 31°F |
| Lyon County, NV | 69 km northeast | 145 nights | 50 nights | 21°F |
| Amador County, CA | 77 km west | 31 nights | 1 night | 37°F |
Alpine County within CA
Alpine County ranks 4 of 58 CA counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Mono County, CA at 130 nights, with a 13°F average winter low. The fewest is Orange County, CA: none, winter lows near 46°F. At 7,719 ft, Alpine County sits 6,420 ft above the state's median county elevation of 1,298 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.
At this many nights, foam alone is not the answer: insulate or heat tape?.
Where this comes from
NOAA 1991-2020 climate normals, blended from 3 nearby stations and adjusted for elevation; closest is Dagget Pass, NV, 41 km away (fair 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.