Will Pipes Freeze in Houston County, MN? 87 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Houston County
In a normal year Houston County, MN gets 87 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 86% 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 | 160 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 87 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 50 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 26 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 87 nights of risk to 50 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 10/10, last around 04/29. For 20°F: 11/10 to 04/01.
How cold Houston County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 11°F; the coldest month, January, averages 8°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: 50 nights a year, and 26 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8°F | 11°F | 23°F | 35°F | 47°F | 58°F | 62°F | 59°F | 51°F | 39°F | 26°F | 15°F |
Houston County next to its neighbours
Fillmore County, MN, 48 km west, gets 93 nights below 20°F to Houston County's 87 nights. La Crosse County, WI, 41 km northeast, gets 72 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houston County, MN | - | 160 nights | 87 nights | 8°F |
| La Crosse County, WI | 41 km northeast | 141 nights | 72 nights | 10°F |
| Winona County, MN | 41 km northwest | 150 nights | 81 nights | 8°F |
| Allamakee County, IA | 45 km south | 158 nights | 85 nights | 8°F |
| Fillmore County, MN | 48 km west | 167 nights | 93 nights | 4°F |
| Winneshiek County, IA | 50 km southwest | 159 nights | 85 nights | 9°F |
| Vernon County, WI | 55 km east | 164 nights | 89 nights | 7°F |
Houston County within MN
Houston County ranks 85 of 87 MN counties for nights below 20°F. The most is St. Louis County, MN at 130 nights, with a 0°F average winter low. The fewest is Winona County, MN: 81 nights, winter lows near 12°F. At 1,211 ft, Houston County sits 96 ft above the state's median county elevation of 1,114 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 Caledonia, MN, 4 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.