Will Pipes Freeze in Teton County, ID? 106 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Teton County
In a normal year Teton County, ID gets 106 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 94% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs October to May, worst in January.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 208 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 106 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 55 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 24 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 106 nights of risk to 55 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 09/09, last around 06/13. For 20°F: 10/13 to 04/23.
How cold Teton County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 11°F; the coldest month, January, averages 9°F overnight. 11 months normally bring at least one night below 32°F (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Aug, 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: 55 nights a year, and 24 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9°F | 12°F | 20°F | 27°F | 35°F | 41°F | 48°F | 46°F | 38°F | 29°F | 19°F | 10°F |
Teton County next to its neighbours
Fremont County, ID, 55 km northwest, gets 121 nights below 20°F to Teton County's 106 nights. Madison County, ID, 36 km west, gets 88 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Teton County, ID | - | 208 nights | 106 nights | 9°F |
| Madison County, ID | 36 km west | 186 nights | 88 nights | 12°F |
| Bonneville County, ID | 52 km southwest | 196 nights | 91 nights | 14°F |
| Fremont County, ID | 55 km northwest | 231 nights | 121 nights | 8°F |
| Teton County, WY | 71 km northeast | 279 nights | 163 nights | 2°F |
| Jefferson County, ID | 89 km west | 199 nights | 107 nights | 8°F |
| Clark County, ID | 109 km northwest | 189 nights | 102 nights | 12°F |
Teton County within ID
Teton County ranks 10 of 44 ID counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Custer County, ID at 145 nights, with a 5°F average winter low. The fewest is Nez Perce County, ID: 20 nights, winter lows near 27°F. At 6,001 ft, Teton County sits 1,355 ft above the state's median county elevation of 4,646 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 Driggs, ID, 9 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.