Will Pipes Freeze in Traill County, ND? 112 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Traill County
In a normal year Traill County, ND gets 112 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 96% 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 | 177 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 112 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 76 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 46 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 112 nights of risk to 76 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 10/09, last around 05/02. For 20°F: 11/06 to 04/04.
How cold Traill County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 4°F; the coldest month, January, averages 0°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: 76 nights a year, and 46 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0°F | 3°F | 18°F | 32°F | 45°F | 56°F | 60°F | 57°F | 49°F | 36°F | 21°F | 8°F |
Traill County next to its neighbours
Steele County, ND, 42 km west, gets 119 nights below 20°F to Traill County's 112 nights. Clay County, MN, 79 km southeast, gets 110 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traill County, ND | - | 177 nights | 112 nights | 0°F |
| Steele County, ND | 42 km west | 187 nights | 119 nights | -4°F |
| Norman County, MN | 54 km east | 180 nights | 113 nights | -4°F |
| Grand Forks County, ND | 57 km north | 186 nights | 118 nights | -3°F |
| Cass County, ND | 58 km south | 182 nights | 116 nights | -1°F |
| Polk County, MN | 68 km northeast | 183 nights | 118 nights | -3°F |
| Clay County, MN | 79 km southeast | 175 nights | 110 nights | -1°F |
Traill County within ND
Traill County ranks 39 of 53 ND counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Rolette County, ND at 137 nights, with a -3°F average winter low. The fewest is Slope County, ND: 100 nights, winter lows near 10°F. At 941 ft, Traill County sits 792 ft below the state's median county elevation of 1,733 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 Hillsboro (3 mi N), ND, 7 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.