Will Pipes Freeze in Wythe County, VA? 41 nights a Year
Freeze nights in Wythe County
In a normal year Wythe County, VA gets 41 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 57% 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 | 130 nights |
| Bare pipe in garage, attic or outside wall | 20°F | 41 nights |
| Insulated pipe in unheated space | 10°F | 8 nights |
| Inside the heated house | 0°F | 1 night |
Foam-sleeving a bare pipe in unheated space takes it from 41 nights of risk to 8 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 10/18, last around 04/25. For 20°F: 11/16 to 03/13.
How cold Wythe County nights get
Average winter (Dec-Feb) low: 25°F; the coldest month, January, averages 24°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: 8 nights a year, and 1 night below zero.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24°F | 26°F | 31°F | 39°F | 49°F | 57°F | 61°F | 60°F | 53°F | 41°F | 31°F | 27°F |
Wythe County next to its neighbours
Bland County, VA, 26 km north, gets 43 nights below 20°F to Wythe County's 41 nights. Grayson County, VA, 30 km southwest, gets 34 nights.
| County | Distance | Below 32°F | Below 20°F | Jan low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wythe County, VA | - | 130 nights | 41 nights | 24°F |
| Bland County, VA | 26 km north | 122 nights | 43 nights | 22°F |
| Grayson County, VA | 30 km southwest | 94 nights | 34 nights | 22°F |
| Galax city, VA | 30 km southeast | 123 nights | 36 nights | 23°F |
| Carroll County, VA | 37 km southeast | 117 nights | 31 nights | 24°F |
| Pulaski County, VA | 38 km northeast | 118 nights | 33 nights | 24°F |
| Smyth County, VA | 41 km west | 126 nights | 40 nights | 23°F |
Wythe County within VA
Wythe County ranks 7 of 133 VA counties for nights below 20°F. The most is Highland County, VA at 62 nights, with a 20°F average winter low. The fewest is Norfolk city, VA: 4 nights, winter lows near 35°F. At 2,574 ft, Wythe County sits 2,127 ft above the state's median county elevation of 448 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.
At this many nights, foam alone is not the answer: insulate or heat tape?.
Where this comes from
NOAA 1991-2020 climate normals, blended from 3 nearby stations and adjusted for elevation; closest is Wytheville, VA, 7 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.