De Witt County, Illinois · Clinton
Water spreading, a burst pipe, sewage, mold or smoke? Call to be connected with a restoration company that serves Clinton, Farmer City and Wapella. Start the steps below while you wait.
Answered 24/7 by a participating local provider. We're a referral service and don't do the work ourselves. How it works
Start here
Pick the closest match. These steps limit the damage and protect your insurance claim. Skip anything that isn't safe.
Pipes freeze in De Witt County on about 37 nights a year, mostly November to March. Older homes, 52% of the stock here, are most at risk.
Heavy rain days of an inch or more come about 6.3 times a year here, most often in July. A sump pump that hasn't run since last season is a common weak point.
Sewage backups in De Witt County spike on heavy-rain days, about 6.3 a year, when sewer mains fill up and water finds the lowest drain.
Roof leaks here come from summer downpours and, with about 83 freeze-thaw days a year, from winter ice dams. Most show up as ceiling stains in the room below.
16% of occupied homes in De Witt County heat mainly with wood or propane, close to the Illinois county median of 16.5%.
About 45 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
De Witt County covers 398 square miles of central Illinois, with about 15,373 residents and 7,320 homes. Clinton is the county seat; Farmer City, Wapella and Waynesville are the next largest communities. It has some of the oldest housing in the state: the median home went up in 1958.
52/100 Water Damage Risk Index: Elevated De Witt County ranks 41 of 102 Illinois counties. See the statewide ranking and method.The three factors where De Witt County ranks highest compared with other Illinois counties.
Pipe-freeze risk in De Witt County sits near the middle of the state. From 2015–2024 it averaged 37 nights a year at 20°F or colder, the range where pipes in exterior walls, crawl spaces and unheated garages freeze, and 109 nights at or below 32°F. That ranks 42nd of 102 counties.
On January 30, 2019 the low fell to about -17°F, and in the stretch ending February 2021 the county went 15 days in a row below freezing. Leaks from split pipes typically appear the day the thaw arrives.
The freeze season here runs November to March, with January the coldest. If you travel then, leave the thermostat at 55°F or above and open sink cabinets on outside walls.
Freezing nights typically start around Oct 24 and end around Apr 19.
De Witt gets fewer downpours than most Illinois counties, but they still fill basements. About 6.3 days a year bring an inch or more (95th of 102), most often in July, out of 38.8 inches of total precipitation. On July 9, 2015, 2.48 inches fell in a single day. The worst three-day stretch dropped 4.5 inches, ending December 29, 2015, the kind of soaking that overwhelms sump pumps and storm sewers.
About 83 days a year swing from below freezing at night to above freezing by day. Those freeze-thaw cycles feed ice dams on roofs, open cracks in foundations and driveways, and stress pipes that are already marginal.
Housing
Illinois's 102 counties range widely in housing age; De Witt ranks 15th, with 76% of its homes built before 1980.
Before 1960 is when 52% of these homes went up. Galvanized supply lines and cast iron drains were standard then, and after 60-plus years both corrode and crack, often out of sight inside a wall or under a slab.
Beyond water
Summer nights that don't drop below 65°F, a good marker of humid air, come about 45 times a year here, below the Illinois county median of 51. 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, De Witt County homes break down as 71% utility gas, 12% electric, 16% propane and under 1% wood. Fires here are likelier to start in the kitchen or the wiring than in the furnace. After any fire, keep the HVAC off until ducts are checked, or soot will travel through the house.
Fire and smoke cleanup: first stepsCoverage
Calls connect to restoration companies that work across De Witt County. The largest communities by population:
Population from ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates. Townships and unincorporated areas are covered too.
Nearby
McLean gets more pipe-freeze nights than De Witt. Logan County has the oldest housing nearby, with 78% of homes built before 1980.
By the numbers
| Factor | De Witt | Illinois median | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes built before 1960 | 52% | 38% | 9 of 102 |
| Homes built before 1980 | 76% | 66% | 15 of 102 |
| Homes built 2000 or later | 11% | 15% | 75 of 102 |
| Manufactured or mobile homes | 4.5% | 5.6% | 56 of 102 |
| Vacant homes | 9.9% | 11% | 61 of 102 |
| Wood or propane heat | 16% | 17% | 54 of 102 |
| Nights at 20°F or colder | 37/yr | 35/yr | 42 of 102 |
| Days with 1 inch+ of rain | 6.3/yr | 8.4/yr | 95 of 102 |
| Freeze-thaw days | 83/yr | 81/yr | 38 of 102 |
| Muggy nights (65°F+) | 45/yr | 51/yr | 66 of 102 |
Rank 1 is the highest value. Bars run from the lowest to the highest Illinois county; the tick marks the median; orange means higher water damage risk than the median, green means lower.
Questions
Peak risk months in De Witt County: freezing from November to March, heavy rain in April, July and September.
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