Will Pipes Freeze in Jackson County, KS? 56 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Jackson County
In a normal year Jackson County, KS gets 56 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 69% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs November to March, worst in January.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 130 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 56 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 21 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 6 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 56 nights of risk to 21 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 10/14, last around 04/24. For 20°F: 11/10 to 03/26.
How cold Jackson County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 18°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: 21 nights a year, and 6 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15°F | 20°F | 29°F | 40°F | 52°F | 62°F | 66°F | 64°F | 55°F | 42°F | 30°F | 20°F |
Jackson County next to its neighbours
Brown County, KS, 50 km northeast, gets 62 nights below 20°F to Jackson County's 56 nights. Jefferson County, KS, 41 km southeast, gets 47 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jackson County, KS | - | 130 nights | 56 nights | 15°F |
| Jefferson County, KS | 41 km southeast | 115 nights | 47 nights | 18°F |
| Shawnee County, KS | 41 km south | 115 nights | 42 nights | 19°F |
| Atchison County, KS | 43 km east | 116 nights | 47 nights | 17°F |
| Nemaha County, KS | 46 km northwest | 132 nights | 56 nights | 16°F |
| Pottawatomie County, KS | 47 km west | 124 nights | 50 nights | 18°F |
| Brown County, KS | 50 km northeast | 132 nights | 62 nights | 15°F |
Jackson County within KS
Jackson County ranks 37 of 105 KS counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Rawlins County, KS at 83 nights, with a 16°F average winter low. The fewest is Cherokee County, KS: 27 nights, winter lows near 26°F. At 1,159 ft, Jackson County sits 366 ft below the state's median county elevation of 1,526 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 Holton, KS, 6 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.