Will Pipes Freeze in Grafton County, NH? 91 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Grafton County
In a normal year Grafton County, NH gets 91 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 88% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs November to April, worst in January.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 179 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 91 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 54 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 25 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 91 nights of risk to 54 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 09/28, last around 05/15. For 20°F: 11/04 to 04/07.
How cold Grafton County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 10°F; the coldest month, January, averages 7°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: 54 nights a year, and 25 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7°F | 8°F | 17°F | 29°F | 41°F | 50°F | 55°F | 53°F | 46°F | 35°F | 26°F | 15°F |
Grafton County next to its neighbours
Orange County, VT, 43 km west, gets 96 nights below 20°F to Grafton County's 91 nights. Belknap County, NH, 56 km southeast, gets 72 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grafton County, NH | - | 179 nights | 91 nights | 7°F |
| Orange County, VT | 43 km west | 178 nights | 96 nights | 6°F |
| Carroll County, NH | 52 km east | 183 nights | 92 nights | 8°F |
| Belknap County, NH | 56 km southeast | 152 nights | 72 nights | 12°F |
| Caledonia County, VT | 64 km north | 176 nights | 92 nights | 6°F |
| Sullivan County, NH | 70 km southwest | 185 nights | 94 nights | 9°F |
| Merrimack County, NH | 71 km south | 172 nights | 80 nights | 12°F |
Grafton County within NH
Grafton County ranks 4 of 10 NH counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Coos County, NH at 110 nights, with a 6°F average winter low. The fewest is Strafford County, NH: 63 nights, winter lows near 18°F. At 1,641 ft, Grafton County sits 928 ft above the state's median county elevation of 712 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 Benton (5 mi SW), NH, 15 km away (fair 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.