Will Pipes Freeze in Rock Island County, IL? 55 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Rock Island County
In a normal year Rock Island County, IL gets 55 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 68% 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 | 126 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 55 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 25 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 9 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 55 nights of risk to 25 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 10/18, last around 04/24. For 20°F: 11/17 to 03/21.
How cold Rock Island County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 18°F; the coldest month, January, averages 14°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, November, December: 25 nights a year, and 9 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14°F | 18°F | 29°F | 40°F | 51°F | 61°F | 65°F | 63°F | 54°F | 43°F | 31°F | 20°F |
Rock Island County next to its neighbours
Scott County, IA, 20 km north, gets 62 nights below 20°F to Rock Island County's 55 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rock Island County, IL | - | 126 nights | 55 nights | 14°F |
| Scott County, IA | 20 km north | 136 nights | 62 nights | 14°F |
| Mercer County, IL | 32 km southwest | 138 nights | 62 nights | 13°F |
| Henry County, IL | 39 km east | 131 nights | 58 nights | 14°F |
| Muscatine County, IA | 46 km west | 126 nights | 57 nights | 14°F |
| Clinton County, IA | 48 km north | 141 nights | 66 nights | 13°F |
| Cedar County, IA | 58 km northwest | 150 nights | 74 nights | 12°F |
Rock Island County within IL
Rock Island County ranks 24 of 102 IL counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Jo Daviess County, IL at 76 nights, with a 14°F average winter low. The fewest is Alexander County, IL: 21 nights, winter lows near 29°F. At 666 ft, Rock Island County sits close to the state's median county elevation of 632 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 Moline Quad City International Airport, IL, 4 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.