Will Pipes Freeze in Montgomery County, IN? 56 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Montgomery County
In a normal year Montgomery County, IN gets 56 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 69% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs November to April, worst in January.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 137 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 56 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 24 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 9 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 56 nights of risk to 24 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 04/27. For 20°F: 11/16 to 03/23.
How cold Montgomery County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 20°F; the coldest month, January, averages 17°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, November, December: 24 nights a year, and 9 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17°F | 20°F | 29°F | 39°F | 50°F | 60°F | 62°F | 60°F | 52°F | 41°F | 32°F | 23°F |
Montgomery County next to its neighbours
Fountain County, IN, 30 km west, gets 51 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montgomery County, IN | - | 137 nights | 56 nights | 17°F |
| Fountain County, IN | 30 km west | 126 nights | 51 nights | 17°F |
| Boone County, IN | 36 km east | 118 nights | 43 nights | 19°F |
| Tippecanoe County, IN | 39 km north | 118 nights | 45 nights | 18°F |
| Parke County, IN | 39 km southwest | 111 nights | 41 nights | 17°F |
| Putnam County, IN | 42 km south | 124 nights | 48 nights | 17°F |
| Hendricks County, IN | 44 km southeast | 115 nights | 41 nights | 19°F |
Montgomery County within IN
Montgomery County ranks 5 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 775 ft, Montgomery 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.
The dates to be done by: when freeze season starts and ends.
Where this comes from
NOAA 1991-2020 climate normals, blended from 3 nearby stations and adjusted for elevation; closest is Crawfordsville (6 mi SE), IN, 9 km away (close match). A normal year, not tonight's forecast: check the forecast low for the night itself. Why elevation is part of the blend: how county numbers are made.