Will Pipes Freeze in Lehigh County, PA? 44 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Lehigh County
In a normal year Lehigh County, PA gets 44 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 60% 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 | 127 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 44 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 12 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 2 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 44 nights of risk to 12 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 04/26. For 20°F: 11/22 to 03/19.
How cold Lehigh County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 22°F; the coldest month, January, averages 20°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, December: 12 nights a year, and 2 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20°F | 22°F | 29°F | 39°F | 49°F | 58°F | 63°F | 61°F | 54°F | 42°F | 33°F | 25°F |
Lehigh County next to its neighbours
Carbon County, PA, 35 km north, gets 65 nights below 20°F to Lehigh County's 44 nights. Northampton County, PA, 28 km northeast, gets 39 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lehigh County, PA | - | 127 nights | 44 nights | 20°F |
| Northampton County, PA | 28 km northeast | 122 nights | 39 nights | 21°F |
| Carbon County, PA | 35 km north | 152 nights | 65 nights | 17°F |
| Berks County, PA | 36 km southwest | 107 nights | 33 nights | 23°F |
| Montgomery County, PA | 49 km southeast | 130 nights | 47 nights | 21°F |
| Bucks County, PA | 51 km southeast | 106 nights | 32 nights | 23°F |
| Schuylkill County, PA | 54 km west | 129 nights | 47 nights | 19°F |
Lehigh County within PA
Lehigh County ranks 47 of 67 PA counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Susquehanna County, PA at 80 nights, with a 15°F average winter low. The fewest is Delaware County, PA: 15 nights, winter lows near 28°F. At 572 ft, Lehigh County sits 569 ft below the state's median county elevation of 1,141 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 Rodale Rsch Ctr, PA, 13 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.