Will Pipes Freeze in Pierce County, ND? 128 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Pierce County
In a normal year Pierce County, ND gets 128 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 99% 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 | 192 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 128 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 84 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 53 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 128 nights of risk to 84 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 09/23, last around 05/17. For 20°F: 10/21 to 04/16.
How cold Pierce County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 0°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: 84 nights a year, and 53 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| -4°F | 0°F | 13°F | 28°F | 41°F | 52°F | 56°F | 54°F | 44°F | 31°F | 16°F | 3°F |
Pierce County next to its neighbours
Rolette County, ND, 60 km north, gets 137 nights below 20°F to Pierce County's 128 nights. Benson County, ND, 49 km east, gets 125 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pierce County, ND | - | 192 nights | 128 nights | -4°F |
| Benson County, ND | 49 km east | 192 nights | 125 nights | -2°F |
| McHenry County, ND | 49 km west | 190 nights | 120 nights | 0°F |
| Rolette County, ND | 60 km north | 205 nights | 137 nights | -6°F |
| Towner County, ND | 72 km northeast | 201 nights | 133 nights | -5°F |
| Wells County, ND | 76 km south | 185 nights | 115 nights | 1°F |
| Sheridan County, ND | 78 km south | 178 nights | 111 nights | 3°F |
Pierce County within ND
Pierce County ranks 5 of 53 ND counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Rolette County, ND at 137 nights, with a -3°F average winter low. The fewest is Slope County, ND: 100 nights, winter lows near 10°F. At 1,572 ft, Pierce County sits 162 ft below the state's median county elevation of 1,733 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 Rugby, ND, 13 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.