Will Pipes Freeze in Union County, PA? 49 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Union County
In a normal year Union County, PA gets 49 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 63% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs November to March, worst in January.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 137 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 49 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 15 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 3 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 49 nights of risk to 15 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 10/19, last around 04/25. For 20°F: 11/26 to 03/20.
How cold Union County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 22°F; the coldest month, January, averages 20°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, December: 15 nights a year, and 3 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20°F | 21°F | 28°F | 38°F | 48°F | 57°F | 62°F | 60°F | 53°F | 42°F | 32°F | 25°F |
Union County next to its neighbours
Lycoming County, PA, 42 km north, gets 50 nights below 20°F to Union County's 49 nights. Snyder County, PA, 23 km south, gets 48 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Union County, PA | - | 137 nights | 49 nights | 20°F |
| Snyder County, PA | 23 km south | 136 nights | 48 nights | 20°F |
| Northumberland County, PA | 32 km southeast | 133 nights | 46 nights | 19°F |
| Montour County, PA | 34 km east | 132 nights | 47 nights | 19°F |
| Lycoming County, PA | 42 km north | 131 nights | 50 nights | 19°F |
| Columbia County, PA | 55 km east | 136 nights | 53 nights | 18°F |
| Juniata County, PA | 56 km southwest | 120 nights | 38 nights | 21°F |
Union County within PA
Union County ranks 38 of 67 PA counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Susquehanna County, PA at 80 nights, with a 15°F average winter low. The fewest is Delaware County, PA: 15 nights, winter lows near 28°F. At 666 ft, Union County sits 475 ft below the state's median county elevation of 1,141 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.
Interior pipes have a threshold too: the four freeze points.
Where this comes from
NOAA 1991-2020 climate normals, blended from 3 nearby stations and adjusted for elevation; closest is Laurelton Ctr, PA, 15 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.