Will Pipes Freeze in Marion County, IN? 42 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Marion County
In a normal year Marion County, IN gets 42 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 57% 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 | 114 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 42 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 15 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 4 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 42 nights of risk to 15 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 10/21, last around 04/20. For 20°F: 11/25 to 03/16.
How cold Marion County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 23°F; the coldest month, January, averages 20°F overnight. 7 months normally bring at least one night below 32°F (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, Oct, Nov, Dec). Nights below 10°F, cold enough to freeze insulated pipe in an unheated space, come in January, February, March, December: 15 nights a year, and 4 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20°F | 23°F | 32°F | 42°F | 53°F | 62°F | 65°F | 63°F | 56°F | 44°F | 34°F | 25°F |
Marion County next to its neighbours
Hancock County, IN, 31 km east, gets 45 nights below 20°F to Marion County's 42 nights. Shelby County, IN, 41 km southeast, gets 39 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marion County, IN | - | 114 nights | 42 nights | 20°F |
| Hancock County, IN | 31 km east | 119 nights | 45 nights | 19°F |
| Hamilton County, IN | 32 km north | 122 nights | 47 nights | 19°F |
| Hendricks County, IN | 32 km west | 115 nights | 41 nights | 19°F |
| Johnson County, IN | 32 km south | 117 nights | 42 nights | 18°F |
| Shelby County, IN | 41 km southeast | 115 nights | 39 nights | 20°F |
| Boone County, IN | 41 km northwest | 118 nights | 43 nights | 19°F |
Marion County within IN
Marion County ranks 55 of 92 IN counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Steuben County, IN at 63 nights, with a 19°F average winter low. The fewest is Floyd County, IN: 19 nights, winter lows near 29°F. At 723 ft, Marion County sits close to the state's median county elevation of 759 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 Indianapolis SE Side, IN, 9 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.