Will Pipes Freeze in Monroe County, WV? 48 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Monroe County
In a normal year Monroe County, WV gets 48 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 63% 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 | 134 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 48 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 11 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 2 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 48 nights of risk to 11 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 10/12, last around 04/30. For 20°F: 11/11 to 03/20.
How cold Monroe County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 24°F; the coldest month, January, averages 22°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, December: 11 nights a year, and 2 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22°F | 24°F | 30°F | 39°F | 48°F | 57°F | 61°F | 59°F | 52°F | 40°F | 31°F | 25°F |
Monroe County next to its neighbours
Greenbrier County, WV, 42 km north, gets 53 nights below 20°F to Monroe County's 48 nights. Summers County, WV, 29 km northwest, gets 31 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monroe County, WV | - | 134 nights | 48 nights | 22°F |
| Summers County, WV | 29 km northwest | 113 nights | 31 nights | 24°F |
| Giles County, VA | 29 km southwest | 122 nights | 37 nights | 23°F |
| Craig County, VA | 30 km east | 132 nights | 45 nights | 22°F |
| Roanoke County, VA | 40 km southeast | 120 nights | 38 nights | 23°F |
| Greenbrier County, WV | 42 km north | 139 nights | 53 nights | 20°F |
| Montgomery County, VA | 44 km south | 117 nights | 35 nights | 23°F |
Monroe County within WV
Monroe County ranks 12 of 55 WV counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Tucker County, WV at 70 nights, with a 20°F average winter low. The fewest is Mingo County, WV: 25 nights, winter lows near 28°F. At 2,073 ft, Monroe County sits 861 ft above the state's median county elevation of 1,213 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 Union (3 mi SSE), WV, 2 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.