Will Pipes Freeze in Clay County, MN? 110 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Clay County
In a normal year Clay County, MN gets 110 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 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 | 110 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 73 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 43 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 110 nights of risk to 73 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 10/03, last around 05/05. For 20°F: 11/02 to 04/09.
How cold Clay County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 3°F; the coldest month, January, averages -1°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, November, December: 73 nights a year, and 43 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| -1°F | 3°F | 17°F | 31°F | 45°F | 56°F | 60°F | 58°F | 48°F | 35°F | 21°F | 7°F |
Clay County next to its neighbours
Norman County, MN, 48 km north, gets 113 nights below 20°F to Clay County's 110 nights. Richland County, ND, 78 km southwest, gets 109 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clay County, MN | - | 175 nights | 110 nights | -1°F |
| Norman County, MN | 48 km north | 180 nights | 113 nights | -4°F |
| Becker County, MN | 57 km east | 180 nights | 116 nights | -3°F |
| Cass County, ND | 58 km west | 182 nights | 116 nights | -1°F |
| Wilkin County, MN | 60 km south | 178 nights | 112 nights | -1°F |
| Mahnomen County, MN | 70 km northeast | 187 nights | 118 nights | -3°F |
| Richland County, ND | 78 km southwest | 175 nights | 109 nights | 0°F |
Clay County within MN
Clay County ranks 23 of 87 MN counties for nights below 20°F. The most is St. Louis County, MN at 130 nights, with a 0°F average winter low. The fewest is Winona County, MN: 81 nights, winter lows near 12°F. At 944 ft, Clay County sits 170 ft below the state's median county elevation of 1,114 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 Moorhead, MN, 19 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.