Will Pipes Freeze in Wirt County, WV? 50 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Wirt County
In a normal year Wirt County, WV gets 50 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 64% 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 | 135 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 50 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 13 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 4 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 50 nights of risk to 13 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 04/29. For 20°F: 11/14 to 03/24.
How cold Wirt County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 23°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: 13 nights a year, and 4 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20°F | 22°F | 28°F | 37°F | 48°F | 57°F | 61°F | 60°F | 53°F | 40°F | 30°F | 25°F |
Wirt County next to its neighbours
Wood County, WV, 24 km northwest, gets 31 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wirt County, WV | - | 135 nights | 50 nights | 20°F |
| Wood County, WV | 24 km northwest | 106 nights | 31 nights | 24°F |
| Calhoun County, WV | 30 km southeast | 130 nights | 42 nights | 21°F |
| Roane County, WV | 31 km south | 128 nights | 44 nights | 22°F |
| Ritchie County, WV | 32 km northeast | 128 nights | 42 nights | 21°F |
| Jackson County, WV | 33 km southwest | 117 nights | 36 nights | 22°F |
| Pleasants County, WV | 43 km northeast | 119 nights | 38 nights | 22°F |
Wirt County within WV
Wirt County ranks 8 of 55 WV counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Tucker County, WV at 70 nights, with a 20°F average winter low. The fewest is Mingo County, WV: 25 nights, winter lows near 28°F. At 825 ft, Wirt County sits 387 ft below the state's median county elevation of 1,213 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.
The dates to be done by: when freeze season starts and ends.
Where this comes from
NOAA 1991-2020 climate normals, blended from 3 nearby stations and adjusted for elevation; closest is Creston, WV, 12 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.