Will Pipes Freeze in Pierce County, WI? 95 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Pierce County
In a normal year Pierce County, WI gets 95 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 90% 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 | 166 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 95 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 56 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 31 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 95 nights of risk to 56 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 09/29, last around 05/13. For 20°F: 10/29 to 04/10.
How cold Pierce 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, November, December: 56 nights a year, and 31 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2°F | 6°F | 19°F | 31°F | 43°F | 53°F | 57°F | 55°F | 47°F | 35°F | 22°F | 10°F |
Pierce County next to its neighbours
St. Croix County, WI, 34 km north, gets 102 nights below 20°F to Pierce County's 95 nights. Goodhue County, MN, 42 km southwest, gets 92 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pierce County, WI | - | 166 nights | 95 nights | 2°F |
| St. Croix County, WI | 34 km north | 170 nights | 102 nights | 2°F |
| Goodhue County, MN | 42 km southwest | 164 nights | 92 nights | 4°F |
| Pepin County, WI | 48 km east | 159 nights | 89 nights | 6°F |
| Dunn County, WI | 48 km northeast | 164 nights | 91 nights | 4°F |
| Washington County, MN | 50 km northwest | 158 nights | 94 nights | 6°F |
| Dakota County, MN | 51 km west | 155 nights | 88 nights | 5°F |
Pierce County within WI
Pierce County ranks 25 of 72 WI counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Vilas County, WI at 116 nights, with a 4°F average winter low. The fewest is Racine County, WI: 55 nights, winter lows near 19°F. At 1,065 ft, Pierce County sits 70 ft above the state's median county elevation of 995 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 Ellsworth (1 mi E), WI, 3 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.