Will Pipes Freeze in Stanley County, SD? 94 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Stanley County
In a normal year Stanley County, SD gets 94 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 | 167 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 94 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 51 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 23 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 94 nights of risk to 51 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 09/27, last around 05/10. For 20°F: 10/24 to 04/12.
How cold Stanley County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 11°F; the coldest month, January, averages 8°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: 51 nights a year, and 23 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8°F | 12°F | 22°F | 33°F | 44°F | 55°F | 61°F | 59°F | 49°F | 36°F | 23°F | 13°F |
Stanley County next to its neighbours
Sully County, SD, 60 km northeast, gets 99 nights below 20°F to Stanley County's 94 nights. Jones County, SD, 52 km south, gets 83 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stanley County, SD | - | 167 nights | 94 nights | 8°F |
| Jones County, SD | 52 km south | 157 nights | 83 nights | 12°F |
| Sully County, SD | 60 km northeast | 172 nights | 99 nights | 7°F |
| Hughes County, SD | 61 km east | 180 nights | 106 nights | 5°F |
| Haakon County, SD | 65 km west | 172 nights | 93 nights | 10°F |
| Dewey County, SD | 82 km north | 170 nights | 94 nights | 8°F |
| Lyman County, SD | 92 km southeast | 166 nights | 90 nights | 9°F |
Stanley County within SD
Stanley County ranks 37 of 66 SD counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Codington County, SD at 113 nights, with a 6°F average winter low. The fewest is Tripp County, SD: 75 nights, winter lows near 15°F. At 1,952 ft, Stanley County sits 167 ft above the state's median county elevation of 1,785 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 Fort Pierre (17 mi WSW), SD, 20 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.