Will Pipes Freeze in Oneida County, ID? 76 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Oneida County
In a normal year Oneida County, ID gets 76 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 80% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs October to April, worst in December.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 181 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 76 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 32 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 9 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 76 nights of risk to 32 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 09/20, last around 05/22. For 20°F: 10/29 to 04/01.
How cold Oneida County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 16°F; the coldest month, January, averages 15°F overnight. 10 months normally bring at least one night below 32°F (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, 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: 32 nights a year, and 9 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15°F | 18°F | 26°F | 32°F | 39°F | 45°F | 52°F | 50°F | 42°F | 32°F | 23°F | 16°F |
Oneida County next to its neighbours
Franklin County, ID, 57 km east, gets 73 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oneida County, ID | - | 181 nights | 76 nights | 15°F |
| Franklin County, ID | 57 km east | 173 nights | 73 nights | 15°F |
| Bannock County, ID | 61 km northeast | 177 nights | 73 nights | 15°F |
| Power County, ID | 63 km northwest | 151 nights | 56 nights | 18°F |
| Box Elder County, UT | 77 km southwest | 168 nights | 73 nights | 15°F |
| Cache County, UT | 81 km southeast | 155 nights | 64 nights | 16°F |
| Cassia County, ID | 92 km west | 163 nights | 63 nights | 18°F |
Oneida County within ID
Oneida County ranks 20 of 44 ID counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Custer County, ID at 145 nights, with a 5°F average winter low. The fewest is Nez Perce County, ID: 20 nights, winter lows near 27°F. At 5,695 ft, Oneida County sits 1,049 ft above the state's median county elevation of 4,646 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 Malad City, ID, 20 km away (fair 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.