Chilton County, Alabama · Clanton
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Chilton County averages 3 nights a year at 20°F or colder, mostly January, and 14% of its homes predate 1960.
January brings the most downpours to Chilton County, part of 14.6 heavy-rain days a year. Check the sump first.
14% of homes here predate 1960, when clay and cast iron sewer laterals were standard. Roots and cracks in those lines are a common cause of backups.
In Chilton County, 5.67 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
15% of occupied homes in Chilton County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Alabama county median of 9.9%.
About 101 nights a year here stay at 65°F or warmer, so basements and crawl spaces can grow mold even without a leak.
Local risk profile
Chilton County covers 693 square miles of central Alabama, with about 45,992 residents and 19,839 homes. Besides Clanton, the county seat, the biggest communities are Jemison, Thorsby and Maplesville. Much of its housing is recent, with a median build year of 1988.
37/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Moderate Chilton County ranks 57 of 67 Alabama counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Chilton County ranks highest compared with other Alabama counties.
For frozen pipes, Chilton County is a typical Alabama county, which is still plenty. It averaged 40 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 3 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 67 Alabama counties that's 25th.
The freeze season here runs January, with January the coldest. If you travel then, leave the thermostat at 55°F or above and open sink cabinets on outside walls.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Nov 16 and the last spring freeze around Mar 16.
Rainfall is about average for Alabama. Of roughly 57 inches of yearly precipitation, the damage comes from the 14.6 days a year with an inch or more, ranked 44th of 67. January, February and March see the most. The single wettest day in the record: 5.67 inches, April 20, 2020. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 7.33 inches (through May 31, 2018).
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 40 times a year here. They're the main driver of ice dams and of water working its way through foundation cracks in late winter.
Housing
Roughly 41% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Chilton among the newer housing stocks of Alabama's 67 counties.
Growth since 2000 added 31% of today's homes. In houses that new, the weak points are washing machine hoses, ice maker lines, water heaters and sump pumps rather than the pipes in the walls.
28% date from 1980 to 1999, the window when polybutylene, a gray flexible plastic supply pipe, was used in some homes. It's prone to leaks at the fittings, so it's worth checking for in a house from those years.
Here 30% of housing is manufactured homes. Check the skirting and the heat tape on the main water line every fall, because that one exposed line is what freezes.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 101 times a year here, close to the Alabama county median of 112. Mold grows when indoor humidity stays above about 60%, the EPA's ceiling. A basement dehumidifier set to 50% and drying anything wet within 24 to 48 hours prevents most problems.
Mold remediation: what to expectBy main heating fuel, Chilton County homes break down as 8% utility gas, 76% electric, 14% propane and under 1% wood. Propane heat is above the Alabama norm. Annual chimney and vent inspection, which the NFPA recommends, is one of the most effective fire-prevention habits for these homes.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Chilton County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Chilton gets more pipe-freeze nights than any of its neighbors. Dallas County has the oldest housing nearby, with 56% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Chilton | Alabama median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 14% | 16% | 49 of 67 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 41% | 44% | 46 of 67 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 31% | 23% | 12 of 67 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 30% | 22% | 11 of 67 |
| Vacant homes | 9.9% | 16% | 62 of 67 |
| Wood or propane heat | 15% | 9.9% | 20 of 67 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 3/yr | 3/yr | 25 of 67 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 15/yr | 15/yr | 44 of 67 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 40/yr | 38/yr | 30 of 67 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 101/yr | 112/yr | 45 of 67 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Alabama county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Chilton County: freezing from January, heavy rain in January, February and March.
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 5-year estimates (2020-2024); weather from NOAA nClimGrid-Daily county averages (EpiNOAA), 2015–2024, averaged across the county; county boundaries from Census TIGER. Reviewed 2026-10-21. Methodology