Will Pipes Freeze in Crook County, WY? 96 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Crook County
In a normal year Crook County, WY gets 96 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 90% 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 | 186 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 96 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 46 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 20 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 96 nights of risk to 46 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 09/25, last around 05/21. For 20°F: 10/21 to 04/17.
How cold Crook County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 13°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, April, October, November, December: 46 nights a year, and 20 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12°F | 13°F | 22°F | 29°F | 39°F | 48°F | 55°F | 53°F | 44°F | 32°F | 22°F | 13°F |
Crook County next to its neighbours
Lawrence County, SD, 66 km southeast, gets 100 nights below 20°F to Crook County's 96 nights. Campbell County, WY, 87 km southwest, gets 84 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crook County, WY | - | 186 nights | 96 nights | 12°F |
| Lawrence County, SD | 66 km southeast | 195 nights | 100 nights | 13°F |
| Weston County, WY | 83 km south | 186 nights | 102 nights | 10°F |
| Campbell County, WY | 87 km southwest | 177 nights | 84 nights | 15°F |
| Butte County, SD | 91 km east | 177 nights | 95 nights | 10°F |
| Carter County, MT | 103 km north | 184 nights | 104 nights | 7°F |
| Powder River County, MT | 120 km northwest | 186 nights | 97 nights | 11°F |
Crook County within WY
Crook County ranks 16 of 23 WY counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Sublette County, WY at 165 nights, with a 1°F average winter low. The fewest is Platte County, WY: 69 nights, winter lows near 16°F. At 4,826 ft, Crook County sits 471 ft below the state's median county elevation of 5,297 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 Sundance, WY, 26 km away (fair 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.