Will Pipes Freeze in Hamilton County, NE? 65 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Hamilton County
In a normal year Hamilton County, NE gets 65 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 74% 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 | 143 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 65 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 29 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 10 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 65 nights of risk to 29 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 10/15, last around 04/21. For 20°F: 11/11 to 03/23.
How cold Hamilton County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 17°F; the coldest month, January, averages 15°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, November, December: 29 nights a year, and 10 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15°F | 18°F | 28°F | 38°F | 51°F | 61°F | 65°F | 63°F | 53°F | 40°F | 28°F | 19°F |
Hamilton County next to its neighbours
Clay County, NE, 39 km south, gets 65 nights below 20°F to Hamilton County's 65 nights. Merrick County, NE, 33 km north, gets 59 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hamilton County, NE | - | 143 nights | 65 nights | 15°F |
| Merrick County, NE | 33 km north | 135 nights | 59 nights | 14°F |
| York County, NE | 36 km east | 141 nights | 64 nights | 14°F |
| Clay County, NE | 39 km south | 145 nights | 65 nights | 16°F |
| Hall County, NE | 40 km west | 144 nights | 64 nights | 16°F |
| Polk County, NE | 52 km northeast | 144 nights | 69 nights | 13°F |
| Fillmore County, NE | 53 km southeast | 131 nights | 55 nights | 17°F |
Hamilton County within NE
Hamilton County ranks 82 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 1,791 ft, Hamilton County sits 219 ft below 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.
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 Aurora, NE, 3 km away (close match). A normal year, not tonight's forecast: check the forecast low for the night itself. How a county figure is built from stations: how the numbers are made.