Will Pipes Freeze in Jones County, SD? 83 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Jones County
In a normal year Jones County, SD gets 83 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 83% 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 | 157 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 83 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 42 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 20 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 83 nights of risk to 42 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 10/09, last around 05/03. For 20°F: 11/03 to 04/04.
How cold Jones County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 14°F; the coldest month, January, averages 12°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: 42 nights a year, and 20 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12°F | 14°F | 24°F | 34°F | 46°F | 56°F | 63°F | 61°F | 51°F | 37°F | 25°F | 15°F |
Jones County next to its neighbours
Mellette County, SD, 42 km south, gets 84 nights below 20°F to Jones County's 83 nights. Jackson County, SD, 81 km west, gets 79 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jones County, SD | - | 157 nights | 83 nights | 12°F |
| Mellette County, SD | 42 km south | 161 nights | 84 nights | 12°F |
| Stanley County, SD | 52 km north | 167 nights | 94 nights | 8°F |
| Lyman County, SD | 68 km east | 166 nights | 90 nights | 9°F |
| Hughes County, SD | 74 km northeast | 180 nights | 106 nights | 5°F |
| Haakon County, SD | 78 km northwest | 172 nights | 93 nights | 10°F |
| Jackson County, SD | 81 km west | 158 nights | 79 nights | 13°F |
Jones County within SD
Jones County ranks 62 of 66 SD counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Codington County, SD at 113 nights, with a 6°F average winter low. The fewest is Tripp County, SD: 75 nights, winter lows near 15°F. At 2,283 ft, Jones County sits 498 ft above the state's median county elevation of 1,785 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 Murdo, SD, 7 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.