Will Pipes Freeze in Kidder County, ND? 118 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Kidder County
In a normal year Kidder County, ND gets 118 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 98% 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 | 187 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 118 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 73 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 43 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 118 nights of risk to 73 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 09/25, last around 05/15. For 20°F: 10/24 to 04/17.
How cold Kidder County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 4°F; the coldest month, January, averages 1°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, April, November, December: 73 nights a year, and 43 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1°F | 5°F | 17°F | 29°F | 41°F | 52°F | 57°F | 55°F | 46°F | 32°F | 19°F | 7°F |
Kidder County next to its neighbours
Logan County, ND, 55 km south, gets 120 nights below 20°F to Kidder County's 118 nights. Burleigh County, ND, 56 km west, gets 111 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kidder County, ND | - | 187 nights | 118 nights | 1°F |
| Logan County, ND | 55 km south | 190 nights | 120 nights | 1°F |
| Burleigh County, ND | 56 km west | 183 nights | 111 nights | 3°F |
| Stutsman County, ND | 59 km east | 182 nights | 111 nights | 1°F |
| Wells County, ND | 72 km north | 185 nights | 115 nights | 1°F |
| Emmons County, ND | 82 km southwest | 186 nights | 112 nights | 1°F |
| Sheridan County, ND | 85 km northwest | 178 nights | 111 nights | 3°F |
Kidder County within ND
Kidder County ranks 23 of 53 ND counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Rolette County, ND at 137 nights, with a -3°F average winter low. The fewest is Slope County, ND: 100 nights, winter lows near 10°F. At 1,733 ft, Kidder County sits close to the state's median county elevation of 1,733 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 Steele (4 mi N), ND, 17 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.