Will Pipes Freeze in Todd County, MN? 108 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Todd County
In a normal year Todd County, MN gets 108 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 95% 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 | 178 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 108 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 70 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 41 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 108 nights of risk to 70 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 05/13. For 20°F: 10/28 to 04/16.
How cold Todd County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 3°F; the coldest month, January, averages -1°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, November, December: 70 nights a year, and 41 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| -1°F | 3°F | 16°F | 29°F | 42°F | 53°F | 57°F | 55°F | 47°F | 34°F | 20°F | 7°F |
Todd County next to its neighbours
Wadena County, MN, 58 km north, gets 115 nights below 20°F to Todd County's 108 nights. Douglas County, MN, 46 km west, gets 102 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Todd County, MN | - | 178 nights | 108 nights | -1°F |
| Douglas County, MN | 46 km west | 168 nights | 102 nights | 2°F |
| Morrison County, MN | 49 km east | 168 nights | 102 nights | 3°F |
| Wadena County, MN | 58 km north | 184 nights | 115 nights | -2°F |
| Stearns County, MN | 61 km south | 166 nights | 100 nights | 2°F |
| Pope County, MN | 68 km southwest | 174 nights | 106 nights | 2°F |
| Otter Tail County, MN | 73 km northwest | 174 nights | 110 nights | -2°F |
Todd County within MN
Todd County ranks 25 of 87 MN counties for nights below 20°F. The most is St. Louis County, MN at 130 nights, with a 0°F average winter low. The fewest is Winona County, MN: 81 nights, winter lows near 12°F. At 1,332 ft, Todd County sits 218 ft above the state's median county elevation of 1,114 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 Long Prairie, MN, 11 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.