Will Pipes Freeze in Penobscot County, ME? 101 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Penobscot County
In a normal year Penobscot County, ME gets 101 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 92% 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 | 175 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 101 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 64 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 33 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 101 nights of risk to 64 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 10/06, last around 05/04. For 20°F: 11/12 to 04/06.
How cold Penobscot County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 7°F; the coldest month, January, averages 4°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: 64 nights a year, and 33 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4°F | 4°F | 16°F | 30°F | 41°F | 52°F | 58°F | 55°F | 47°F | 36°F | 26°F | 14°F |
Penobscot County next to its neighbours
Piscataquis County, ME, 66 km northwest, gets 109 nights below 20°F to Penobscot County's 101 nights. Washington County, ME, 96 km southeast, gets 87 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Penobscot County, ME | - | 175 nights | 101 nights | 4°F |
| Piscataquis County, ME | 66 km northwest | 188 nights | 109 nights | 2°F |
| Washington County, ME | 96 km southeast | 165 nights | 87 nights | 11°F |
| Hancock County, ME | 97 km south | 160 nights | 75 nights | 11°F |
| Somerset County, ME | 101 km west | 192 nights | 113 nights | 1°F |
| Waldo County, ME | 110 km south | 158 nights | 76 nights | 11°F |
| Kennebec County, ME | 140 km southwest | 151 nights | 76 nights | 11°F |
Penobscot County within ME
Penobscot County ranks 5 of 16 ME counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Franklin County, ME at 116 nights, with a 5°F average winter low. The fewest is Knox County, ME: 55 nights, winter lows near 19°F. At 359 ft, Penobscot County sits 61 ft above the state's median county elevation of 298 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 Lincoln Sanitary District/wtp, ME, 13 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.