Will Pipes Freeze in Hitchcock County, NE? 72 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Hitchcock County
In a normal year Hitchcock County, NE gets 72 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 78% 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 | 158 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 72 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 26 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 7 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 72 nights of risk to 26 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 10/13, last around 04/29. For 20°F: 11/07 to 03/30.
How cold Hitchcock County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 16°F; the coldest month, January, averages 15°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: 26 nights a year, and 7 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15°F | 18°F | 27°F | 36°F | 47°F | 58°F | 63°F | 62°F | 52°F | 38°F | 25°F | 17°F |
Hitchcock County next to its neighbours
Rawlins County, KS, 44 km south, gets 83 nights below 20°F to Hitchcock County's 72 nights. Hayes County, NE, 40 km north, gets 70 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hitchcock County, NE | - | 158 nights | 72 nights | 15°F |
| Hayes County, NE | 40 km north | 157 nights | 70 nights | 15°F |
| Rawlins County, KS | 44 km south | 167 nights | 83 nights | 15°F |
| Red Willow County, NE | 49 km east | 156 nights | 72 nights | 15°F |
| Dundy County, NE | 54 km west | 164 nights | 79 nights | 15°F |
| Decatur County, KS | 66 km southeast | 163 nights | 78 nights | 16°F |
| Frontier County, NE | 67 km northeast | 166 nights | 88 nights | 13°F |
Hitchcock County within NE
Hitchcock County ranks 62 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 2,799 ft, Hitchcock County sits 789 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 Trenton Dam (1 mi N), NE, 2 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.