Will Pipes Freeze in Catron County, NM? 111 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Catron County
In a normal year Catron County, NM gets 111 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 95% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs October to May, worst in January.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 217 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 111 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 37 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 8 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 111 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 09/21, last around 06/17. For 20°F: 10/16 to 05/09.
How cold Catron County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 16°F; the coldest month, January, averages 14°F overnight. 10 months normally bring at least one night below 32°F (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, 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 8 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14°F | 18°F | 21°F | 26°F | 32°F | 40°F | 49°F | 48°F | 40°F | 29°F | 20°F | 15°F |
Catron County next to its neighbours
Greenlee County, AZ, 108 km southwest, gets 50 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Catron County, NM | - | 217 nights | 111 nights | 14°F |
| Greenlee County, AZ | 108 km southwest | 156 nights | 50 nights | 21°F |
| Cibola County, NM | 120 km north | 193 nights | 91 nights | 14°F |
| Grant County, NM | 130 km south | 117 nights | 24 nights | 28°F |
| Socorro County, NM | 134 km east | 128 nights | 44 nights | 22°F |
| Sierra County, NM | 141 km southeast | 72 nights | 6 nights | 30°F |
| Valencia County, NM | 172 km northeast | 149 nights | 63 nights | 19°F |
Catron County within NM
Catron County ranks 2 of 33 NM counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Rio Arriba County, NM at 118 nights, with a 11°F average winter low. The fewest is Sierra County, NM: 6 nights, winter lows near 31°F. At 7,727 ft, Catron County sits 2,123 ft above the state's median county elevation of 5,604 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 Luna Ranger Station, NM, 52 km away (distant 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.