Will Pipes Freeze in Platte County, WY? 69 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Platte County
In a normal year Platte County, WY gets 69 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 76% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs October to April, worst in December.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 154 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 69 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 27 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 10 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 69 nights of risk to 27 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 09/22, last around 05/19. For 20°F: 10/20 to 04/16.
How cold Platte County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 16°F; the coldest month, December, averages 16°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: 27 nights a year, and 10 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17°F | 17°F | 24°F | 30°F | 39°F | 48°F | 54°F | 52°F | 43°F | 32°F | 24°F | 16°F |
Platte County next to its neighbours
Goshen County, WY, 50 km east, gets 102 nights below 20°F to Platte County's 69 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Platte County, WY | - | 154 nights | 69 nights | 17°F |
| Goshen County, WY | 50 km east | 188 nights | 102 nights | 13°F |
| Albany County, WY | 82 km southwest | 210 nights | 112 nights | 10°F |
| Laramie County, WY | 96 km south | 183 nights | 85 nights | 16°F |
| Converse County, WY | 106 km northwest | 182 nights | 92 nights | 13°F |
| Sioux County, NE | 107 km east | 202 nights | 114 nights | 11°F |
| Scotts Bluff County, NE | 108 km east | 172 nights | 83 nights | 15°F |
Platte County within WY
Platte County ranks 23 of 23 WY counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Sublette County, WY at 165 nights, with a 1°F average winter low. At 4,573 ft, Platte County sits 724 ft below the state's median county elevation of 5,297 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 Wheatland (4 mi N), WY, 2 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.