Harris County, Georgia · Hamilton
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With 10% of homes built before 1960 and about 2 hard-freeze nights a year, frozen and split pipes are a leading winter risk in the county.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 13.1 times a year here, most often in January. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
10% 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 Harris County, 5.82 inches fell on the wettest day of the 2015–2024 record. Storms like that, and ice dams in snowy winters, cause most roof leaks.
10% of occupied homes in Harris County heat mainly with wood or propane, above the Georgia county median of 7.1%.
With 102 muggy nights a year, mold in Harris County can appear within days of a leak. Dry first, then clean.
Local risk profile
Harris County covers 464 square miles of western Georgia, with about 36,086 residents and 14,699 homes. Hamilton is the county seat; Cataula, Pine Mountain and Ellerslie are the next largest communities. Much of its housing is recent, with a median build year of 1997.
49/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated Harris County ranks 84 of 159 Georgia counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where Harris County ranks highest compared with other Georgia counties.
Harris is on the colder side of Georgia for pipes. It averaged 36 freezing nights a year over 2015–2024, 2 of them at 20°F or colder, cold enough for pipes in outside walls and crawl spaces to freeze. Among 159 Georgia counties that's 48th.
Most freezing nights fall from January, peaking in January. Disconnect garden hoses and shut off outdoor spigots before the first hard frost, and keep the heat at 55°F or higher if you'll be away.
On average the first fall freeze arrives around Nov 18 and the last spring freeze around Mar 11.
Heavy rain is a bigger factor here than in most of Georgia. About 13.1 days a year bring an inch or more (41st of 159), most often in January, out of 56.5 inches of total precipitation. On September 17, 2020, 5.82 inches fell in a single day. Multi-day storms matter most for basements; the wettest three days on record here totaled 7.85 inches (through September 27, 2024).
Freeze-thaw days, below freezing overnight and above it by afternoon, come about 36 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 23% of the county's housing was built before 1980. That puts Harris among the newer housing stocks of Georgia's 159 counties.
43% of homes were built in 2000 or later, more than in most of Georgia. Newer plumbing rarely corrodes, so damage here tends to come from appliance supply lines, water heaters, sump pumps and storms.
About 34% of homes went up between 1980 and 1999. Some houses from the late 1970s to the mid-1990s were plumbed with polybutylene, a gray plastic pipe known for failing at fittings. A plumber can tell you in a few minutes whether you have it.
Here 8% 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
Harris County averages 102 warm, muggy nights a year (lows of 65°F or more) and gets the most rain in December. 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, Harris County homes break down as 7% utility gas, 82% electric, 8% propane and 2% wood. Wood heat is more common here than in most Georgia counties. Heating equipment is one of the leading causes of home fires nationally, and the NFPA recommends having chimneys and vents inspected every year.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across Harris County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
Meriwether and Troup get more pipe-freeze nights than Harris. Muscogee County has the oldest housing nearby, with 53% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | Harris | Georgia median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 9.9% | 15% | 114 of 159 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 23% | 38% | 132 of 159 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 43% | 27% | 20 of 159 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 7.7% | 21% | 130 of 159 |
| Vacant homes | 11% | 14% | 101 of 159 |
| Wood or propane heat | 9.9% | 7.1% | 64 of 159 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 2/yr | 2/yr | 48 of 159 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 13/yr | 12/yr | 41 of 159 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 36/yr | 29/yr | 55 of 159 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 102/yr | 112/yr | 102 of 159 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Georgia county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in Harris County: freezing from January, heavy rain in January, April and December.
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