Will Pipes Freeze in Valley County, ID? 117 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Valley County
In a normal year Valley County, ID gets 117 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 97% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs September to May, worst in January.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 252 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 117 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 60 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 25 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 117 nights of risk to 60 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 09/11, last around 06/12. For 20°F: 10/31 to 04/05.
How cold Valley County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 11°F; the coldest month, January, averages 9°F overnight. 12 months normally bring at least one night below 32°F (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, 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: 60 nights a year, and 25 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9°F | 12°F | 19°F | 24°F | 31°F | 37°F | 41°F | 39°F | 33°F | 26°F | 18°F | 11°F |
Valley County next to its neighbours
Custer County, ID, 126 km southeast, gets 145 nights below 20°F to Valley County's 117 nights. Adams County, ID, 67 km west, gets 109 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valley County, ID | - | 252 nights | 117 nights | 9°F |
| Adams County, ID | 67 km west | 230 nights | 109 nights | 11°F |
| Boise County, ID | 97 km south | 238 nights | 101 nights | 12°F |
| Washington County, ID | 104 km southwest | 154 nights | 55 nights | 18°F |
| Gem County, ID | 108 km southwest | 157 nights | 51 nights | 20°F |
| Idaho County, ID | 111 km north | 243 nights | 94 nights | 15°F |
| Custer County, ID | 126 km southeast | 261 nights | 145 nights | 3°F |
Valley County within ID
Valley County ranks 5 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 7,900 ft, Valley County sits 3,254 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.
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 Yellowpine, ID, 15 km away (distant 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.