Will Pipes Freeze in Van Buren County, IA? 55 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Van Buren County
In a normal year Van Buren County, IA gets 55 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 68% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs November to April, worst in January.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 128 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 55 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 25 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 9 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 55 nights of risk to 25 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 10/13, last around 04/26. For 20°F: 11/10 to 03/25.
How cold Van Buren County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 17°F; the coldest month, January, averages 14°F overnight. 7 months normally bring at least one night below 32°F (Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, Oct, Nov, Dec). Nights below 10°F, cold enough to freeze insulated pipe in an unheated space, come in January, February, March, November, December: 25 nights a year, and 9 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14°F | 17°F | 29°F | 39°F | 51°F | 60°F | 65°F | 62°F | 53°F | 42°F | 29°F | 20°F |
Van Buren County next to its neighbours
Scotland County, MO, 38 km southwest, gets 56 nights below 20°F to Van Buren County's 55 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Van Buren County, IA | - | 128 nights | 55 nights | 14°F |
| Jefferson County, IA | 28 km north | 127 nights | 54 nights | 14°F |
| Scotland County, MO | 38 km southwest | 130 nights | 56 nights | 14°F |
| Davis County, IA | 39 km west | 128 nights | 59 nights | 15°F |
| Lee County, IA | 42 km east | 124 nights | 56 nights | 16°F |
| Henry County, IA | 43 km northeast | 130 nights | 58 nights | 13°F |
| Clark County, MO | 43 km southeast | 125 nights | 55 nights | 15°F |
Van Buren County within IA
Van Buren County ranks 97 of 99 IA counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Osceola County, IA at 99 nights, with a 8°F average winter low. The fewest is Des Moines County, IA: 52 nights, winter lows near 19°F. At 647 ft, Van Buren County sits 443 ft below the state's median county elevation of 1,090 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 Keosauqua, IA, 3 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.