Will Pipes Freeze in Carroll County, NH? 92 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Carroll County
In a normal year Carroll County, NH gets 92 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 88% 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 | 183 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 92 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 48 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 21 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 92 nights of risk to 48 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 09/26, last around 05/16. For 20°F: 11/02 to 04/08.
How cold Carroll County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 11°F; the coldest month, January, averages 8°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: 48 nights a year, and 21 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8°F | 9°F | 18°F | 29°F | 41°F | 50°F | 55°F | 53°F | 45°F | 34°F | 25°F | 16°F |
Carroll County next to its neighbours
Belknap County, NH, 43 km southwest, gets 72 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carroll County, NH | - | 183 nights | 92 nights | 8°F |
| Belknap County, NH | 43 km southwest | 152 nights | 72 nights | 12°F |
| Grafton County, NH | 52 km west | 179 nights | 91 nights | 7°F |
| York County, ME | 65 km southeast | 156 nights | 70 nights | 11°F |
| Strafford County, NH | 65 km south | 146 nights | 63 nights | 15°F |
| Cumberland County, ME | 70 km east | 145 nights | 68 nights | 13°F |
| Merrimack County, NH | 74 km southwest | 172 nights | 80 nights | 12°F |
Carroll County within NH
Carroll County ranks 3 of 10 NH counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Coos County, NH at 110 nights, with a 6°F average winter low. The fewest is Strafford County, NH: 63 nights, winter lows near 18°F. At 519 ft, Carroll County sits 193 ft below the state's median county elevation of 712 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 Tamworth 4, NH, 5 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.