Will Pipes Freeze in Seneca County, OH? 49 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Seneca County
In a normal year Seneca County, OH gets 49 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 63% 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 | 123 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 49 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 17 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 5 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 49 nights of risk to 17 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 10/23, last around 04/23. For 20°F: 11/28 to 03/19.
How cold Seneca County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 21°F; the coldest month, January, averages 19°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, December: 17 nights a year, and 5 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19°F | 21°F | 29°F | 39°F | 50°F | 60°F | 64°F | 62°F | 54°F | 43°F | 33°F | 25°F |
Seneca County next to its neighbours
Sandusky County, OH, 26 km north, gets 49 nights below 20°F to Seneca County's 49 nights. Huron County, OH, 45 km east, gets 47 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seneca County, OH | - | 123 nights | 49 nights | 19°F |
| Sandusky County, OH | 26 km north | 129 nights | 49 nights | 19°F |
| Crawford County, OH | 35 km southeast | 129 nights | 51 nights | 20°F |
| Wyandot County, OH | 35 km southwest | 130 nights | 50 nights | 17°F |
| Huron County, OH | 45 km east | 123 nights | 47 nights | 19°F |
| Hancock County, OH | 47 km west | 117 nights | 43 nights | 20°F |
| Ottawa County, OH | 48 km north | 121 nights | 46 nights | 20°F |
Seneca County within OH
Seneca County ranks 28 of 88 OH counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Williams County, OH at 61 nights, with a 19°F average winter low. The fewest is Scioto County, OH: 28 nights, winter lows near 24°F. At 773 ft, Seneca County sits 143 ft below the state's median county elevation of 916 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 Tiffin, OH, 3 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.