Will Pipes Freeze in Hancock County, IA? 89 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Hancock County
In a normal year Hancock County, IA gets 89 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 87% 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 | 160 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 89 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 52 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 26 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 89 nights of risk to 52 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 10/07, last around 04/29. For 20°F: 11/04 to 04/02.
How cold Hancock County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 10°F; the coldest month, January, averages 6°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: 52 nights a year, and 26 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6°F | 10°F | 23°F | 34°F | 48°F | 58°F | 62°F | 59°F | 50°F | 37°F | 25°F | 13°F |
Hancock County next to its neighbours
Wright County, IA, 38 km south, gets 89 nights below 20°F to Hancock County's 89 nights. Cerro Gordo County, IA, 40 km east, gets 88 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hancock County, IA | - | 160 nights | 89 nights | 6°F |
| Winnebago County, IA | 34 km north | 159 nights | 89 nights | 6°F |
| Wright County, IA | 38 km south | 161 nights | 89 nights | 6°F |
| Cerro Gordo County, IA | 40 km east | 161 nights | 88 nights | 7°F |
| Kossuth County, IA | 41 km west | 161 nights | 90 nights | 6°F |
| Humboldt County, IA | 50 km southwest | 154 nights | 82 nights | 8°F |
| Worth County, IA | 52 km northeast | 164 nights | 92 nights | 4°F |
Hancock County within IA
Hancock County ranks 10 of 99 IA counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Osceola County, IA at 99 nights, with a 8°F average winter low. The fewest is Des Moines County, IA: 52 nights, winter lows near 19°F. At 1,209 ft, Hancock County sits 119 ft above the state's median county elevation of 1,090 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 Britt (3 mi E), IA, 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.