Will Pipes Freeze in Orleans County, VT? 103 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Orleans County
In a normal year Orleans County, VT gets 103 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 93% 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 | 185 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 103 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 66 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 38 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 103 nights of risk to 66 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 09/30, last around 05/14. For 20°F: 11/03 to 04/11.
How cold Orleans 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: 66 nights a year, and 38 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2°F | 3°F | 13°F | 28°F | 40°F | 50°F | 55°F | 53°F | 45°F | 34°F | 24°F | 12°F |
Orleans County next to its neighbours
Essex County, VT, 43 km east, gets 106 nights below 20°F to Orleans County's 103 nights. Lamoille County, VT, 39 km southwest, gets 98 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orleans County, VT | - | 185 nights | 103 nights | 2°F |
| Lamoille County, VT | 39 km southwest | 179 nights | 98 nights | 4°F |
| Caledonia County, VT | 41 km south | 176 nights | 92 nights | 6°F |
| Essex County, VT | 43 km east | 188 nights | 106 nights | 2°F |
| Franklin County, VT | 52 km west | 165 nights | 88 nights | 6°F |
| Washington County, VT | 68 km southwest | 172 nights | 92 nights | 6°F |
| Chittenden County, VT | 76 km southwest | 151 nights | 78 nights | 11°F |
Orleans County within VT
Orleans County ranks 2 of 14 VT counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Essex County, VT at 106 nights, with a 5°F average winter low. The fewest is Windham County, VT: 77 nights, winter lows near 13°F. At 974 ft, Orleans County sits close to the state's median county elevation of 974 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 Newport, VT, 14 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.