Will Pipes Freeze in Crawford County, MO? 56 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Crawford County
In a normal year Crawford County, MO gets 56 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 69% 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 | 136 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 56 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 18 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 4 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 56 nights of risk to 18 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 10/08, last around 04/26. For 20°F: 11/08 to 03/23.
How cold Crawford County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 21°F; the coldest month, January, averages 19°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: 18 nights a year, and 4 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19°F | 22°F | 30°F | 40°F | 50°F | 59°F | 64°F | 61°F | 52°F | 40°F | 30°F | 23°F |
Crawford County next to its neighbours
Washington County, MO, 37 km east, gets 39 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crawford County, MO | - | 136 nights | 56 nights | 19°F |
| Washington County, MO | 37 km east | 105 nights | 39 nights | 21°F |
| Phelps County, MO | 43 km west | 101 nights | 35 nights | 22°F |
| Dent County, MO | 43 km south | 94 nights | 30 nights | 22°F |
| Franklin County, MO | 54 km northeast | 106 nights | 35 nights | 22°F |
| Gasconade County, MO | 55 km north | 119 nights | 46 nights | 19°F |
| Maries County, MO | 58 km west | 112 nights | 40 nights | 24°F |
Crawford County within MO
Crawford County ranks 13 of 115 MO counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Caldwell County, MO at 65 nights, with a 19°F average winter low. The fewest is Pemiscot County, MO: 14 nights, winter lows near 31°F. At 889 ft, Crawford County sits close to the state's median county elevation of 842 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 Steelville (2 mi N), MO, 7 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.