Will Pipes Freeze in Garden County, NE? 84 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Garden County
In a normal year Garden County, NE gets 84 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 85% 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 | 171 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 84 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 35 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 13 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 84 nights of risk to 35 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 09/29, last around 05/13. For 20°F: 10/26 to 04/10.
How cold Garden County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 14°F; the coldest month, January, averages 13°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: 35 nights a year, and 13 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13°F | 15°F | 24°F | 32°F | 42°F | 53°F | 59°F | 57°F | 47°F | 34°F | 22°F | 13°F |
Garden County next to its neighbours
Arthur County, NE, 51 km east, gets 83 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Garden County, NE | - | 171 nights | 84 nights | 13°F |
| Arthur County, NE | 51 km east | 169 nights | 83 nights | 14°F |
| Grant County, NE | 55 km northeast | 166 nights | 80 nights | 15°F |
| Deuel County, NE | 58 km south | 167 nights | 82 nights | 14°F |
| Morrill County, NE | 58 km west | 171 nights | 83 nights | 14°F |
| Keith County, NE | 73 km southeast | 149 nights | 62 nights | 17°F |
| Cheyenne County, NE | 75 km southwest | 170 nights | 80 nights | 17°F |
Garden County within NE
Garden County ranks 18 of 93 NE counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Sioux County, NE at 114 nights, with a 11°F average winter low. The fewest is Fillmore County, NE: 55 nights, winter lows near 19°F. At 3,867 ft, Garden County sits 1,858 ft above the state's median county elevation of 2,010 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 Crescent Lake Nwr, NE, 18 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.