Will Pipes Freeze in Big Horn County, MT? 88 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Big Horn County
In a normal year Big Horn County, MT gets 88 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 86% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs October to April, worst in January.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 175 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 88 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 44 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 19 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 88 nights of risk to 44 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 09/17, last around 05/21. For 20°F: 10/17 to 04/15.
How cold Big Horn County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 14°F; the coldest month, January, averages 13°F overnight. 9 months normally bring at least one night below 32°F (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec). Nights below 10°F, cold enough to freeze insulated pipe in an unheated space, come in January, February, March, April, October, November, December: 44 nights a year, and 19 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13°F | 14°F | 23°F | 31°F | 40°F | 49°F | 54°F | 52°F | 43°F | 32°F | 22°F | 14°F |
Big Horn County next to its neighbours
Yellowstone County, MT, 83 km northwest, gets 89 nights below 20°F to Big Horn County's 88 nights. Treasure County, MT, 93 km north, gets 85 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Big Horn County, MT | - | 175 nights | 88 nights | 13°F |
| Yellowstone County, MT | 83 km northwest | 181 nights | 89 nights | 12°F |
| Sheridan County, WY | 86 km southeast | 185 nights | 93 nights | 13°F |
| Treasure County, MT | 93 km north | 173 nights | 85 nights | 10°F |
| Big Horn County, WY | 105 km south | 183 nights | 109 nights | 5°F |
| Rosebud County, MT | 108 km northeast | 172 nights | 84 nights | 11°F |
| Carbon County, MT | 120 km west | 183 nights | 91 nights | 11°F |
Big Horn County within MT
Big Horn County ranks 36 of 56 MT counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Sheridan County, MT at 129 nights, with a 2°F average winter low. The fewest is Lake County, MT: 40 nights, winter lows near 22°F. At 3,662 ft, Big Horn County sits 260 ft below the state's median county elevation of 3,922 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 Wyola (1 mi SW), MT, 33 km away (fair match). A normal year, not tonight's forecast: check the forecast low for the night itself. How a county figure is built from stations: how the numbers are made.