Will Pipes Freeze in Atchison County, MO? 60 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Atchison County
In a normal year Atchison County, MO gets 60 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 71% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs November to March, worst in January.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 138 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 60 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 23 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 6 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 60 nights of risk to 23 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 10/15, last around 04/19. For 20°F: 11/13 to 03/19.
How cold Atchison County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 18°F; the coldest month, January, averages 15°F overnight. 8 months normally bring at least one night below 32°F (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, 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: 23 nights a year, and 6 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15°F | 18°F | 29°F | 39°F | 51°F | 62°F | 66°F | 63°F | 54°F | 40°F | 30°F | 20°F |
Atchison County next to its neighbours
Nemaha County, NE, 35 km west, gets 62 nights below 20°F to Atchison County's 60 nights. Holt County, MO, 42 km southeast, gets 58 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atchison County, MO | - | 138 nights | 60 nights | 15°F |
| Nemaha County, NE | 35 km west | 137 nights | 62 nights | 14°F |
| Fremont County, IA | 37 km north | 135 nights | 62 nights | 13°F |
| Holt County, MO | 42 km southeast | 127 nights | 58 nights | 15°F |
| Richardson County, NE | 42 km southwest | 133 nights | 59 nights | 16°F |
| Page County, IA | 42 km northeast | 145 nights | 70 nights | 12°F |
| Nodaway County, MO | 48 km east | 136 nights | 62 nights | 14°F |
Atchison County within MO
Atchison County ranks 7 of 115 MO counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Caldwell County, MO at 65 nights, with a 19°F average winter low. The fewest is Pemiscot County, MO: 14 nights, winter lows near 31°F. At 1,043 ft, Atchison County sits 201 ft above the state's median county elevation of 842 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.
The dates to be done by: when freeze season starts and ends.
Where this comes from
NOAA 1991-2020 climate normals, blended from 3 nearby stations and adjusted for elevation; closest is Tarkio, MO, 4 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.