Will Pipes Freeze in Douglas County, MN? 102 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Douglas County
In a normal year Douglas County, MN gets 102 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 92% 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 | 168 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 102 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 65 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 37 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 102 nights of risk to 65 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 05/02. For 20°F: 11/05 to 04/06.
How cold Douglas County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 6°F; the coldest month, January, averages 2°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: 65 nights a year, and 37 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2°F | 6°F | 19°F | 32°F | 45°F | 56°F | 61°F | 58°F | 50°F | 37°F | 23°F | 9°F |
Douglas County next to its neighbours
Pope County, MN, 39 km south, gets 106 nights below 20°F to Douglas County's 102 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Douglas County, MN | - | 168 nights | 102 nights | 2°F |
| Pope County, MN | 39 km south | 174 nights | 106 nights | 2°F |
| Grant County, MN | 42 km west | 171 nights | 105 nights | 1°F |
| Todd County, MN | 46 km east | 178 nights | 108 nights | -1°F |
| Otter Tail County, MN | 56 km north | 174 nights | 110 nights | -2°F |
| Stevens County, MN | 56 km southwest | 172 nights | 106 nights | 1°F |
| Swift County, MN | 76 km south | 168 nights | 102 nights | 1°F |
Douglas County within MN
Douglas County ranks 43 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 1,397 ft, Douglas County sits 283 ft above 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.
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 Alexandria Municipal Airport, MN, 9 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.