Will Pipes Freeze in Wood County, OH? 50 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Wood County
In a normal year Wood County, OH 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 March, worst in January.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 127 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 50 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 18 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 6 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 50 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 10/25, last around 04/22. For 20°F: 11/28 to 03/19.
How cold Wood County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 22°F; the coldest month, January, averages 19°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, December: 18 nights a year, and 6 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19°F | 21°F | 29°F | 39°F | 50°F | 61°F | 64°F | 62°F | 54°F | 44°F | 33°F | 25°F |
Wood County next to its neighbours
Henry County, OH, 37 km west, gets 54 nights below 20°F to Wood County's 50 nights. Lucas County, OH, 38 km north, gets 46 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wood County, OH | - | 127 nights | 50 nights | 19°F |
| Henry County, OH | 37 km west | 129 nights | 54 nights | 17°F |
| Lucas County, OH | 38 km north | 121 nights | 46 nights | 20°F |
| Sandusky County, OH | 40 km east | 129 nights | 49 nights | 19°F |
| Hancock County, OH | 40 km south | 117 nights | 43 nights | 20°F |
| Seneca County, OH | 49 km southeast | 123 nights | 49 nights | 19°F |
| Fulton County, OH | 49 km northwest | 139 nights | 56 nights | 16°F |
Wood County within OH
Wood County ranks 21 of 88 OH counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Williams County, OH at 61 nights, with a 19°F average winter low. The fewest is Scioto County, OH: 28 nights, winter lows near 24°F. At 674 ft, Wood County sits 242 ft below the state's median county elevation of 916 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 Bowling Green Wastewater Plant, OH, 3 km away (close match). A normal year, not tonight's forecast: check the forecast low for the night itself. How a county figure is built from stations: how the numbers are made.