Will Pipes Freeze in Darke County, OH? 49 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Darke County
In a normal year Darke County, OH gets 49 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 64% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs November to March, worst in January.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 126 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 49 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 20 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 6 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 49 nights of risk to 20 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 10/20, last around 04/21. For 20°F: 11/22 to 03/20.
How cold Darke County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 22°F; the coldest month, January, averages 19°F overnight. 7 months normally bring at least one night below 32°F (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, Oct, Nov, Dec). Nights below 10°F, cold enough to freeze insulated pipe in an unheated space, come in January, February, March, December: 20 nights a year, and 6 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19°F | 21°F | 30°F | 40°F | 52°F | 61°F | 64°F | 61°F | 53°F | 42°F | 33°F | 25°F |
Darke County next to its neighbours
Randolph County, IN, 33 km west, gets 50 nights below 20°F to Darke County's 49 nights. Miami County, OH, 35 km east, gets 39 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Darke County, OH | - | 126 nights | 49 nights | 19°F |
| Randolph County, IN | 33 km west | 125 nights | 50 nights | 18°F |
| Miami County, OH | 35 km east | 114 nights | 39 nights | 20°F |
| Shelby County, OH | 42 km northeast | 131 nights | 50 nights | 18°F |
| Preble County, OH | 44 km south | 126 nights | 46 nights | 17°F |
| Wayne County, IN | 44 km southwest | 125 nights | 49 nights | 19°F |
| Mercer County, OH | 45 km north | 117 nights | 43 nights | 19°F |
Darke County within OH
Darke County ranks 24 of 88 OH counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Williams County, OH at 61 nights, with a 19°F average winter low. The fewest is Scioto County, OH: 28 nights, winter lows near 24°F. At 1,044 ft, Darke County sits 129 ft above the state's median county elevation of 916 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 Greenville Water Plant, OH, 4 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.