Will Pipes Freeze in Scott County, MN? 92 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Scott County
In a normal year Scott County, MN gets 92 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 88% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs November to April, worst in January.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 160 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 92 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 56 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 30 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 92 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 10/05, last around 05/02. For 20°F: 11/06 to 04/03.
How cold Scott County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 9°F; the coldest month, January, averages 5°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 30 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5°F | 9°F | 21°F | 34°F | 46°F | 57°F | 61°F | 59°F | 51°F | 38°F | 25°F | 12°F |
Scott County next to its neighbours
Carver County, MN, 28 km northwest, gets 94 nights below 20°F to Scott County's 92 nights. Dakota County, MN, 37 km east, gets 88 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scott County, MN | - | 160 nights | 92 nights | 5°F |
| Carver County, MN | 28 km northwest | 160 nights | 94 nights | 5°F |
| Le Sueur County, MN | 35 km southwest | 163 nights | 93 nights | 4°F |
| Dakota County, MN | 37 km east | 155 nights | 88 nights | 5°F |
| Rice County, MN | 38 km southeast | 167 nights | 94 nights | 5°F |
| Hennepin County, MN | 40 km north | 156 nights | 88 nights | 7°F |
| Ramsey County, MN | 53 km northeast | 155 nights | 90 nights | 7°F |
Scott County within MN
Scott County ranks 76 of 87 MN counties for nights below 20°F. The most is St. Louis County, MN at 130 nights, with a 0°F average winter low. The fewest is Winona County, MN: 81 nights, winter lows near 12°F. At 941 ft, Scott County sits 174 ft below the state's median county elevation of 1,114 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.
At this many nights, foam alone is not the answer: insulate or heat tape?.
Where this comes from
NOAA 1991-2020 climate normals, blended from 3 nearby stations and adjusted for elevation; closest is Jordan (1 mi SSW), MN, 8 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.