Will Pipes Freeze in Wallowa County, OR? 65 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Wallowa County
In a normal year Wallowa County, OR gets 65 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 74% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs October to April, worst in December.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 190 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 65 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 18 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 4 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 65 nights of risk to 18 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 10/01, last around 05/24. For 20°F: 11/04 to 04/02.
How cold Wallowa County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 19°F; the coldest month, December, averages 18°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, November, December: 18 nights a year, and 4 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19°F | 20°F | 26°F | 30°F | 38°F | 43°F | 47°F | 47°F | 40°F | 32°F | 25°F | 18°F |
Wallowa County next to its neighbours
Asotin County, WA, 65 km north, gets 52 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wallowa County, OR | - | 190 nights | 65 nights | 19°F |
| Asotin County, WA | 65 km north | 179 nights | 52 nights | 20°F |
| Union County, OR | 71 km southwest | 137 nights | 30 nights | 25°F |
| Nez Perce County, ID | 89 km north | 109 nights | 20 nights | 27°F |
| Lewis County, ID | 93 km northeast | 159 nights | 40 nights | 23°F |
| Columbia County, WA | 96 km northwest | 111 nights | 20 nights | 27°F |
| Garfield County, WA | 97 km north | 125 nights | 25 nights | 27°F |
Wallowa County within OR
Wallowa County ranks 6 of 36 OR counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Baker County, OR at 76 nights, with a 20°F average winter low. The fewest is Lincoln County, OR: under 1 night, winter lows near 40°F. At 4,534 ft, Wallowa County sits 2,517 ft above the state's median county elevation of 2,017 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 Joseph, OR, 27 km away (fair match). A normal year, not tonight's forecast: check the forecast low for the night itself. Why elevation is part of the blend: how county numbers are made.