Will Pipes Freeze in Pettis County, MO? 42 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Pettis County
In a normal year Pettis County, MO gets 42 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 58% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs November to March, worst in January.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 114 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 42 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 15 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 4 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 42 nights of risk to 15 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 10/22, last around 04/18. For 20°F: 11/19 to 03/14.
How cold Pettis County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 22°F; the coldest month, January, averages 20°F overnight. 7 months normally bring at least one night below 32°F (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, Oct, Nov, Dec). Nights below 10°F, cold enough to freeze insulated pipe in an unheated space, come in January, February, March, December: 15 nights a year, and 4 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20°F | 24°F | 33°F | 42°F | 53°F | 63°F | 67°F | 65°F | 56°F | 44°F | 33°F | 24°F |
Pettis County next to its neighbours
Johnson County, MO, 46 km west, gets 45 nights below 20°F to Pettis County's 42 nights. Cooper County, MO, 43 km east, gets 39 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pettis County, MO | - | 114 nights | 42 nights | 20°F |
| Cooper County, MO | 43 km east | 107 nights | 39 nights | 20°F |
| Johnson County, MO | 46 km west | 118 nights | 45 nights | 18°F |
| Saline County, MO | 46 km north | 115 nights | 44 nights | 19°F |
| Benton County, MO | 47 km south | 107 nights | 37 nights | 21°F |
| Morgan County, MO | 49 km southeast | 109 nights | 39 nights | 22°F |
| Henry County, MO | 58 km southwest | 117 nights | 45 nights | 19°F |
Pettis County within MO
Pettis County ranks 45 of 115 MO counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Caldwell County, MO at 65 nights, with a 19°F average winter low. The fewest is Pemiscot County, MO: 14 nights, winter lows near 31°F. At 764 ft, Pettis County sits 78 ft below the state's median county elevation of 842 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 Sedalia Water Plant, MO, 8 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.