Will Pipes Freeze in Carroll County, IL? 72 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Carroll County
In a normal year Carroll County, IL gets 72 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 78% 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 | 150 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 72 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 37 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 16 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 72 nights of risk to 37 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 10/07, last around 05/02. For 20°F: 11/06 to 04/02.
How cold Carroll County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 15°F; the coldest month, January, averages 12°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, November, December: 37 nights a year, and 16 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12°F | 15°F | 26°F | 37°F | 48°F | 58°F | 61°F | 59°F | 50°F | 39°F | 28°F | 18°F |
Carroll County next to its neighbours
Jo Daviess County, IL, 40 km northwest, gets 76 nights below 20°F to Carroll County's 72 nights. Whiteside County, IL, 36 km south, gets 67 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carroll County, IL | - | 150 nights | 72 nights | 12°F |
| Whiteside County, IL | 36 km south | 144 nights | 67 nights | 12°F |
| Stephenson County, IL | 38 km northeast | 147 nights | 70 nights | 11°F |
| Jo Daviess County, IL | 40 km northwest | 154 nights | 76 nights | 11°F |
| Ogle County, IL | 50 km east | 140 nights | 65 nights | 13°F |
| Clinton County, IA | 54 km west | 141 nights | 66 nights | 13°F |
| Jackson County, IA | 55 km west | 150 nights | 73 nights | 11°F |
Carroll County within IL
Carroll County ranks 2 of 102 IL counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Jo Daviess County, IL at 76 nights, with a 14°F average winter low. The fewest is Alexander County, IL: 21 nights, winter lows near 29°F. At 848 ft, Carroll County sits 217 ft above the state's median county elevation of 632 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 Mount Carroll, IL, 6 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.