Will Pipes Freeze in Sheridan County, NE? 96 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Sheridan County
In a normal year Sheridan County, NE gets 96 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 | 186 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 96 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 43 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 18 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 96 nights of risk to 43 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 09/24, last around 05/15. For 20°F: 10/22 to 04/16.
How cold Sheridan County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 12°F; the coldest month, January, averages 11°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, April, October, November, December: 43 nights a year, and 18 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11°F | 13°F | 23°F | 30°F | 41°F | 52°F | 58°F | 55°F | 45°F | 31°F | 20°F | 12°F |
Sheridan County next to its neighbours
Dawes County, NE, 67 km west, gets 90 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sheridan County, NE | - | 186 nights | 96 nights | 11°F |
| Dawes County, NE | 67 km west | 176 nights | 90 nights | 13°F |
| Box Butte County, NE | 68 km southwest | 168 nights | 79 nights | 15°F |
| Grant County, NE | 83 km southeast | 166 nights | 80 nights | 15°F |
| Oglala Lakota County, SD | 93 km north | 171 nights | 88 nights | 13°F |
| Bennett County, SD | 94 km northeast | 174 nights | 88 nights | 12°F |
| Garden County, NE | 98 km south | 171 nights | 84 nights | 13°F |
Sheridan County within NE
Sheridan County ranks 2 of 93 NE counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Sioux County, NE at 114 nights, with a 11°F average winter low. The fewest is Fillmore County, NE: 55 nights, winter lows near 19°F. At 3,842 ft, Sheridan County sits 1,832 ft above the state's median county elevation of 2,010 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 Hay Springs (12 mi S), NE, 27 km away (fair 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.