Will Pipes Freeze in Sullivan County, MO? 62 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Sullivan County
In a normal year Sullivan County, MO gets 62 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 72% 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 | 132 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 62 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 28 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 10 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 62 nights of risk to 28 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 10/14, last around 04/26. For 20°F: 11/11 to 03/27.
How cold Sullivan County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 18°F; the coldest month, January, averages 15°F overnight. 8 months normally bring at least one night below 32°F (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Oct, Nov, Dec). Nights below 10°F, cold enough to freeze insulated pipe in an unheated space, come in January, February, March, November, December: 28 nights a year, and 10 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15°F | 19°F | 29°F | 39°F | 51°F | 61°F | 64°F | 62°F | 54°F | 42°F | 30°F | 20°F |
Sullivan County next to its neighbours
Putnam County, MO, 31 km north, gets 61 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sullivan County, MO | - | 132 nights | 62 nights | 15°F |
| Putnam County, MO | 31 km north | 134 nights | 61 nights | 15°F |
| Linn County, MO | 38 km south | 119 nights | 53 nights | 17°F |
| Grundy County, MO | 40 km west | 127 nights | 55 nights | 16°F |
| Adair County, MO | 43 km east | 126 nights | 55 nights | 15°F |
| Mercer County, MO | 45 km northwest | 127 nights | 56 nights | 15°F |
| Schuyler County, MO | 58 km northeast | 128 nights | 57 nights | 15°F |
Sullivan County within MO
Sullivan County ranks 4 of 115 MO counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Caldwell County, MO at 65 nights, with a 19°F average winter low. The fewest is Pemiscot County, MO: 14 nights, winter lows near 31°F. At 830 ft, Sullivan County sits close to the state's median county elevation of 842 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 Green City (5 mi N), MO, 21 km away (fair 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.