Will Pipes Freeze in Marshall County, SD? 110 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Marshall County
In a normal year Marshall County, SD gets 110 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 95% 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 | 173 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 110 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 69 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 42 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 110 nights of risk to 69 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 10/09, last around 05/02. For 20°F: 11/06 to 04/07.
How cold Marshall 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: 69 nights a year, and 42 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2°F | 5°F | 18°F | 32°F | 46°F | 57°F | 62°F | 60°F | 51°F | 37°F | 23°F | 9°F |
Marshall County next to its neighbours
Sargent County, ND, 41 km north, gets 112 nights below 20°F to Marshall County's 110 nights. Day County, SD, 42 km south, gets 105 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marshall County, SD | - | 173 nights | 110 nights | 2°F |
| Sargent County, ND | 41 km north | 178 nights | 112 nights | -1°F |
| Day County, SD | 42 km south | 167 nights | 105 nights | 3°F |
| Roberts County, SD | 51 km east | 169 nights | 100 nights | 4°F |
| Brown County, SD | 62 km west | 179 nights | 112 nights | 1°F |
| Richland County, ND | 77 km northeast | 175 nights | 109 nights | 0°F |
| Ransom County, ND | 79 km north | 182 nights | 111 nights | 0°F |
Marshall County within SD
Marshall County ranks 6 of 66 SD counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Codington County, SD at 113 nights, with a 6°F average winter low. The fewest is Tripp County, SD: 75 nights, winter lows near 15°F. At 1,822 ft, Marshall County sits close to the state's median county elevation of 1,785 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 Roy Lake, SD, 12 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.