Will Pipes Freeze in Lincoln County, NE? 78 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Lincoln County
In a normal year Lincoln County, NE gets 78 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 81% 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 | 163 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 78 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 32 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 11 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 78 nights of risk to 32 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 10/10, last around 05/03. For 20°F: 11/03 to 04/02.
How cold Lincoln County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 15°F; the coldest month, January, averages 14°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: 32 nights a year, and 11 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14°F | 16°F | 25°F | 33°F | 45°F | 56°F | 61°F | 59°F | 50°F | 37°F | 24°F | 16°F |
Lincoln County next to its neighbours
Logan County, NE, 60 km northeast, gets 89 nights below 20°F to Lincoln County's 78 nights. Hayes County, NE, 63 km southwest, gets 70 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln County, NE | - | 163 nights | 78 nights | 14°F |
| Logan County, NE | 60 km northeast | 172 nights | 89 nights | 13°F |
| Hayes County, NE | 63 km southwest | 157 nights | 70 nights | 15°F |
| Frontier County, NE | 64 km southeast | 166 nights | 88 nights | 13°F |
| McPherson County, NE | 74 km northwest | 169 nights | 83 nights | 14°F |
| Keith County, NE | 77 km west | 149 nights | 62 nights | 17°F |
| Perkins County, NE | 77 km west | 166 nights | 79 nights | 14°F |
Lincoln County within NE
Lincoln County ranks 46 of 93 NE counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Sioux County, NE at 114 nights, with a 11°F average winter low. The fewest is Fillmore County, NE: 55 nights, winter lows near 19°F. At 3,051 ft, Lincoln County sits 1,041 ft above the state's median county elevation of 2,010 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 N Platte Experiment Farm, NE, 1 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.