Will Pipes Freeze in Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK? 102 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Kenai Peninsula Borough
In a normal year Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK gets 102 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 92% 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 | 194 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 102 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 60 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 31 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 102 nights of risk to 60 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 05/07. For 20°F: 11/04 to 04/05.
How cold Kenai Peninsula Borough nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 13°F; the coldest month, January, averages 10°F overnight. 12 months normally bring at least one night below 32°F (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec). Nights below 10°F, cold enough to freeze insulated pipe in an unheated space, come in January, February, March, April, October, November, December: 60 nights a year, and 31 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10°F | 14°F | 17°F | 29°F | 38°F | 45°F | 50°F | 48°F | 42°F | 31°F | 19°F | 14°F |
Kenai Peninsula Borough next to its neighbours
Anchorage Municipality, AK, 188 km northeast, gets 104 nights below 20°F to Kenai Peninsula Borough's 102 nights. Kodiak Island Borough, AK, 310 km south, gets 36 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK | - | 194 nights | 102 nights | 10°F |
| Anchorage Municipality, AK | 188 km northeast | 203 nights | 104 nights | 12°F |
| Matanuska-Susitna Borough, AK | 259 km northeast | 221 nights | 133 nights | 5°F |
| Kodiak Island Borough, AK | 310 km south | 150 nights | 36 nights | 24°F |
| Bristol Bay Borough, AK | 320 km southwest | 192 nights | 104 nights | 10°F |
| Chugach Census Area, AK | 336 km east | 129 nights | 32 nights | 25°F |
| Lake and Peninsula Borough, AK | 342 km southwest | 190 nights | 99 nights | 10°F |
Kenai Peninsula Borough within AK
Kenai Peninsula Borough ranks 12 of 26 AK counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, AK at 192 nights, with a -19°F average winter low. The fewest is Ketchikan Gateway Borough, AK: 10 nights, winter lows near 32°F. At 35 ft, Kenai Peninsula Borough sits 786 ft below the state's median county elevation of 822 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 Big River Lakes, AK, 50 km away (fair 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.