Will Pipes Freeze in Lincoln County, WI? 106 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Lincoln County
In a normal year Lincoln County, WI gets 106 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 94% 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 | 180 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 106 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 65 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 38 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 106 nights of risk to 65 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 10/04, last around 05/10. For 20°F: 11/07 to 04/12.
How cold Lincoln County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 6°F; the coldest month, January, averages 2°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: 65 nights a year, and 38 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2°F | 4°F | 15°F | 29°F | 42°F | 53°F | 57°F | 55°F | 47°F | 35°F | 23°F | 11°F |
Lincoln County next to its neighbours
Oneida County, WI, 45 km north, gets 108 nights below 20°F to Lincoln County's 106 nights. Marathon County, WI, 48 km south, gets 93 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln County, WI | - | 180 nights | 106 nights | 2°F |
| Oneida County, WI | 45 km north | 187 nights | 108 nights | 2°F |
| Marathon County, WI | 48 km south | 166 nights | 93 nights | 6°F |
| Langlade County, WI | 53 km east | 183 nights | 106 nights | 4°F |
| Taylor County, WI | 62 km west | 177 nights | 103 nights | 3°F |
| Price County, WI | 62 km northwest | 190 nights | 114 nights | 1°F |
| Vilas County, WI | 82 km north | 193 nights | 116 nights | 1°F |
Lincoln County within WI
Lincoln County ranks 10 of 72 WI counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Vilas County, WI at 116 nights, with a 4°F average winter low. The fewest is Racine County, WI: 55 nights, winter lows near 19°F. At 1,519 ft, Lincoln County sits 523 ft above the state's median county elevation of 995 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 Rice Rsvr Tomahawk-2, WI, 23 km away (close 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.