Will Pipes Freeze in Grant County, WI? 77 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Grant County
In a normal year Grant County, WI gets 77 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 81% 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 | 150 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 77 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 41 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 20 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 77 nights of risk to 41 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 10/11, last around 04/27. For 20°F: 11/11 to 03/29.
How cold Grant County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 13°F; the coldest month, January, averages 9°F overnight. 8 months normally bring at least one night below 32°F (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Oct, Nov, Dec). Nights below 10°F, cold enough to freeze insulated pipe in an unheated space, come in January, February, March, November, December: 41 nights a year, and 20 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9°F | 13°F | 25°F | 36°F | 48°F | 58°F | 62°F | 60°F | 52°F | 39°F | 28°F | 16°F |
Grant County next to its neighbours
Iowa County, WI, 48 km east, gets 83 nights below 20°F to Grant County's 77 nights. Dubuque County, IA, 48 km south, gets 70 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grant County, WI | - | 150 nights | 77 nights | 9°F |
| Crawford County, WI | 46 km northwest | 147 nights | 76 nights | 8°F |
| Dubuque County, IA | 48 km south | 144 nights | 70 nights | 11°F |
| Iowa County, WI | 48 km east | 159 nights | 83 nights | 9°F |
| Clayton County, IA | 51 km west | 154 nights | 81 nights | 8°F |
| Lafayette County, WI | 52 km southeast | 157 nights | 79 nights | 9°F |
| Richland County, WI | 60 km north | 165 nights | 89 nights | 8°F |
Grant County within WI
Grant County ranks 54 of 72 WI counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Vilas County, WI at 116 nights, with a 4°F average winter low. The fewest is Racine County, WI: 55 nights, winter lows near 19°F. At 1,111 ft, Grant County sits 115 ft above the state's median county elevation of 995 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 Lancaster (4 mi WSW), WI, 9 km away (close match). A normal year, not tonight's forecast: check the forecast low for the night itself. Why elevation is part of the blend: how county numbers are made.