Will Pipes Freeze in Blair County, PA? 46 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Blair County
In a normal year Blair County, PA gets 46 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 61% 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 | 126 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 46 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 14 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 2 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 46 nights of risk to 14 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 10/21, last around 04/25. For 20°F: 11/25 to 03/24.
How cold Blair County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 22°F; the coldest month, January, averages 20°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, December: 14 nights a year, and 2 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20°F | 21°F | 28°F | 39°F | 49°F | 58°F | 62°F | 60°F | 53°F | 42°F | 33°F | 25°F |
Blair County next to its neighbours
Cambria County, PA, 34 km west, gets 63 nights below 20°F to Blair County's 46 nights. Huntingdon County, PA, 30 km east, gets 40 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blair County, PA | - | 126 nights | 46 nights | 20°F |
| Huntingdon County, PA | 30 km east | 121 nights | 40 nights | 21°F |
| Cambria County, PA | 34 km west | 154 nights | 63 nights | 16°F |
| Mifflin County, PA | 57 km east | 127 nights | 45 nights | 20°F |
| Bedford County, PA | 58 km south | 144 nights | 54 nights | 19°F |
| Clearfield County, PA | 58 km north | 146 nights | 59 nights | 17°F |
| Centre County, PA | 60 km northeast | 136 nights | 55 nights | 19°F |
Blair County within PA
Blair County ranks 45 of 67 PA counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Susquehanna County, PA at 80 nights, with a 15°F average winter low. The fewest is Delaware County, PA: 15 nights, winter lows near 28°F. At 1,366 ft, Blair County sits 225 ft above the state's median county elevation of 1,141 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 Altoona (3 mi W), PA, 13 km away (close 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.