Will Pipes Freeze in Wright County, MN? 98 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Wright County
In a normal year Wright County, MN gets 98 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 91% of US counties.
Risk level: Severe. The risk season runs October to April, worst in January.
It depends where the pipe is
| Pipe | Freezes near | Nights a year |
|---|---|---|
| Outdoor spigot, open crawlspace | 32°F | 163 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 98 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 60 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 32 nights |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 98 nights of risk to 60 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 10/09, last around 04/30. For 20°F: 11/08 to 04/02.
How cold Wright County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 7°F; the coldest month, January, averages 3°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: 60 nights a year, and 32 nights below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3°F | 7°F | 21°F | 34°F | 47°F | 57°F | 61°F | 59°F | 51°F | 37°F | 24°F | 11°F |
Wright County next to its neighbours
Sherburne County, MN, 35 km northeast, gets 100 nights below 20°F to Wright County's 98 nights. Carver County, MN, 41 km south, gets 94 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wright County, MN | - | 163 nights | 98 nights | 3°F |
| Sherburne County, MN | 35 km northeast | 170 nights | 100 nights | 4°F |
| Carver County, MN | 41 km south | 160 nights | 94 nights | 5°F |
| Hennepin County, MN | 43 km southeast | 156 nights | 88 nights | 7°F |
| Meeker County, MN | 44 km west | 168 nights | 100 nights | 0°F |
| McLeod County, MN | 46 km southwest | 163 nights | 96 nights | 4°F |
| Anoka County, MN | 58 km east | 168 nights | 99 nights | 4°F |
Wright County within MN
Wright County ranks 53 of 87 MN counties for nights below 20°F. The most is St. Louis County, MN at 130 nights, with a 0°F average winter low. The fewest is Winona County, MN: 81 nights, winter lows near 12°F. At 1,037 ft, Wright County sits 77 ft below the state's median county elevation of 1,114 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 Buffalo (2 mi NE), MN, 10 km away (close 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.