Will Pipes Freeze in Windham County, VT? 77 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Windham County
In a normal year Windham County, VT gets 77 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 80% 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 | 167 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 77 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 37 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 13 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 77 nights of risk to 37 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 10/04, last around 05/14. For 20°F: 11/09 to 04/03.
How cold Windham County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 13°F; the coldest month, January, averages 10°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, November, December: 37 nights a year, and 13 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10°F | 12°F | 19°F | 31°F | 42°F | 52°F | 57°F | 55°F | 48°F | 37°F | 27°F | 18°F |
Windham County next to its neighbours
Bennington County, VT, 32 km west, gets 81 nights below 20°F to Windham County's 77 nights. Franklin County, MA, 47 km south, gets 66 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Windham County, VT | - | 167 nights | 77 nights | 10°F |
| Bennington County, VT | 32 km west | 168 nights | 81 nights | 10°F |
| Cheshire County, NH | 39 km east | 169 nights | 77 nights | 11°F |
| Franklin County, MA | 47 km south | 154 nights | 66 nights | 14°F |
| Sullivan County, NH | 57 km northeast | 185 nights | 94 nights | 9°F |
| Windsor County, VT | 65 km north | 176 nights | 88 nights | 8°F |
| Washington County, NY | 68 km northwest | 157 nights | 77 nights | 8°F |
Windham County within VT
Windham County ranks 14 of 14 VT counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Essex County, VT at 106 nights, with a 5°F average winter low. At 1,399 ft, Windham County sits 425 ft above the state's median county elevation of 974 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 Rowe (3 mi NE), MA, 31 km away (fair 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.