Will Pipes Freeze in McHenry County, ND? 120 nights a Year
Freeze nights in McHenry County
In a normal year McHenry County, ND gets 120 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 98% 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 | 190 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 120 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 77 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 47 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 120 nights of risk to 77 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 10/01, last around 05/09. For 20°F: 10/27 to 04/11.
How cold McHenry County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 3°F; the coldest month, January, averages 0°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: 77 nights a year, and 47 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0°F | 4°F | 16°F | 29°F | 42°F | 52°F | 56°F | 54°F | 45°F | 32°F | 18°F | 6°F |
McHenry County next to its neighbours
Pierce County, ND, 49 km east, gets 128 nights below 20°F to McHenry County's 120 nights. Ward County, ND, 67 km west, gets 113 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| McHenry County, ND | - | 190 nights | 120 nights | 0°F |
| Pierce County, ND | 49 km east | 192 nights | 128 nights | -4°F |
| Bottineau County, ND | 64 km north | 194 nights | 127 nights | -3°F |
| Ward County, ND | 67 km west | 184 nights | 113 nights | 2°F |
| Sheridan County, ND | 76 km south | 178 nights | 111 nights | 3°F |
| Rolette County, ND | 83 km northeast | 205 nights | 137 nights | -6°F |
| McLean County, ND | 87 km southwest | 192 nights | 119 nights | 2°F |
McHenry County within ND
McHenry County ranks 15 of 53 ND counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Rolette County, ND at 137 nights, with a -3°F average winter low. The fewest is Slope County, ND: 100 nights, winter lows near 10°F. At 1,541 ft, McHenry County sits 193 ft below the state's median county elevation of 1,733 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 Granville, ND, 16 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.